Public hearings set in Southwest Missouri over Liberty Utilities rate hike
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Beginning in July, the Missouri Public Service Commission (PSC) will host in-person and virtual public hearings for Liberty Utilities customers in Southwest Missouri regarding Liberty's request for an electric rate increase.
Liberty is looking for an increase of $152.8 million per year from rate revenues and to raise the monthly fixed residential customer charge from $13 to $16, PSC says.
The hearings will consist of a public information and Q&A session, followed by the Commission taking public comments. Those interested in attending are encouraged to go to the meeting location closest to their service area.
Missouri Public Service Commission investigating Liberty Utilities billing
The in-person public hearing schedule is as follows:
July 21 at 6 p.m.: Joplin, Missouri Southern State University, Corley Hall, 3950 Newman Road
July 22 at noon: Nixa, City Council Chambers, 715 West Mount Vernon Street
July 22 at 6 p.m.: Bolivar, Southwest Baptist University, McClelland Joe Roberts Room, 1600 University Avenue
July 23 at noon: Branson, City Council Chambers, 110 West Maddux Street
July 24 at noon: Aurora, Recreation Center, 126 West Hadley Street
There will also be two virtual local public hearings on July 23 at 6 p.m. and July 25 at noon. To attend the hearing by telephone, you can call toll-free at 1-855-718-6621 and enter the access code 2861 936 9973 when prompted for the July 23 meeting and access code 2866 586 9948 when prompted for the July 25 hearing, then press #. If prompted for a password, enter 0261.
To attend a virtual hearing online, visit webex.com or download the Cisco WebEx application on your mobile device, computer or tablet and join the meeting by the hearing time and entering the access code and password above.
Individuals who cannot make the hearings can also submit a written comment through the methods on the PSC website.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Cell phone bills to go up in West Virginia
CHARLESTON, (WBOY) — Starting next month, West Virginians will see a slight increase to their cell phone bills. According to a release Thursday from the Public Service Commission (PSC) of West Virginia, the wireless enhanced 911 (WE911) fee in West Virginia will increase by 10.2 percent in July, going from $3.64 to $4.01. On top of that, wireless providers will begin to collect a $0.08 wireless tower fee and a $0.29 public safety wireless fee, both of which will be shown separately on customers' bills. In total, customers will see their 911 fees jump from $3.64 to $4.38. All of West Virginia under Air Quality Alert Thursday So what do these funds do? The funds from these new fees are designed to go toward improving and operating 911 and emergency phone services, the release said. The PSC collects the fees through wireless service providers, but the funds are redistributed to counties. The WE911 fee can be recalculated every two years based on costs that county commissions impose on local exchange and Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) users, which is known as the enhanced 911 fee. If the enhanced 911 fee goes up by a certain percentage, the WE911 fee is set to match it. In March 2025, the PSC voted to increase the enhanced 911 fee by 10.17 percent, meaning that the WE911 fee has now been raised to match, rounding to the nearest penny. According to the West Virginia State Code, the fee can never increase by more than 25% at a time. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Public hearing held over potential Spire rate increase
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Missouri Public Service Commission hosted a public forum on Wednesday evening, discussing the rate increase . The 11-month process includes five public forums all over the state, after Spire asked the commission to raise their rates by 15%, or around $14 per household per month. In total, the company would receive nearly $290 million from customers in Missouri. Jackson Co. Legislator Abarca charged in Missouri, Kansas 'We recognize that seems like a big number,' said David Yonce, the managing director of regulatory affairs for Spire Missouri. 'When these rates do become effective, the last increase that we had was three years ago.' The energy company filed the increase on November 25, 2024. Ten days earlier, Spire enacted a rate decrease, thanks to a change in the price of natural gas. For Western Missouri the rate decrease amounted to roughly $18.70 per month. Eighty percent of the proposed increase will be used to recoup investment made improving Spire's infrastructure, like pipelines and meters. The Spire team at the meeting said they were replacing pipes made of bare steel and cast iron. 'This is important to be able to reduce the possibility of leaks in the future,' Yonce said. 'We have to be able to provide our customers with service even on those peak conditions when it's really cold, and our customers depend on us to heat their homes.' Outside the meeting, opponents of the rate increase rallied in front of the community center. They say any price increase is unfair. 'This is brazen corporate price gouging,' said Cashmere Ketterman with Sunrise Movement KC. 'In my opinion, frankly, they don't need an additional $200 million for a quote unquote, system improvements.' Ketterman said the focus should be on renewable energy and supporting the working class. Download WDAF+ for Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV 'Even like a $14, $15 or $20 rate increase, that could be devastating for most Missouri families,' he said. 'If I had a recommendation, the recommendation to them [Spire] would to be get out of our communities and to city council, fund clean energy! We deserve affordable utility prices. That's the very least they can do for us if they're not going to provide clean and renewable energy.' The Missouri Public Service Commission will make a decision on the rate increase in October 2025. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Public hearings set in Southwest Missouri over Liberty Utilities rate hike
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Beginning in July, the Missouri Public Service Commission (PSC) will host in-person and virtual public hearings for Liberty Utilities customers in Southwest Missouri regarding Liberty's request for an electric rate increase. Liberty is looking for an increase of $152.8 million per year from rate revenues and to raise the monthly fixed residential customer charge from $13 to $16, PSC says. The hearings will consist of a public information and Q&A session, followed by the Commission taking public comments. Those interested in attending are encouraged to go to the meeting location closest to their service area. Missouri Public Service Commission investigating Liberty Utilities billing The in-person public hearing schedule is as follows: July 21 at 6 p.m.: Joplin, Missouri Southern State University, Corley Hall, 3950 Newman Road July 22 at noon: Nixa, City Council Chambers, 715 West Mount Vernon Street July 22 at 6 p.m.: Bolivar, Southwest Baptist University, McClelland Joe Roberts Room, 1600 University Avenue July 23 at noon: Branson, City Council Chambers, 110 West Maddux Street July 24 at noon: Aurora, Recreation Center, 126 West Hadley Street There will also be two virtual local public hearings on July 23 at 6 p.m. and July 25 at noon. To attend the hearing by telephone, you can call toll-free at 1-855-718-6621 and enter the access code 2861 936 9973 when prompted for the July 23 meeting and access code 2866 586 9948 when prompted for the July 25 hearing, then press #. If prompted for a password, enter 0261. To attend a virtual hearing online, visit or download the Cisco WebEx application on your mobile device, computer or tablet and join the meeting by the hearing time and entering the access code and password above. Individuals who cannot make the hearings can also submit a written comment through the methods on the PSC website. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
