Connecticut regulators approved a $450.8 million annual revenue requirement for United Illuminating on Tuesday, a decision that increases the amount proposed in a draft decision six weeks ago, but falls far short of the utility’s request for $105 million in additional revenue.
The Public Utilities Regulatory Authority’s final decision represents an 8% reduction from UI’s proposed $490.3 million revenue requirement, which would have amounted to a 27.4% increase over the company’s currently authorized revenue of $384.9 million.
The approved revenue requirement will increase the average residential customer’s monthly bill by approximately $9.99 for those using 750 kilowatt hours of electricity, effective Nov. 1, for the rate year running through Oct. 31, 2026, according to PURA.
Tuesday’s ruling marks a shift from PURA’s Sept. 10 draft decision, which approved just $413.5 million in annual revenue for the Bridgeport-based utility. The decision was approved by PURA Vice Chairman David Arconti and Commissioner Michael Caron, whose term has expired but is staying on temporarily.
That preliminary figure prompted sharp criticism from UI’s parent company, Avangrid, whose CEO called Connecticut’s regulatory environment “toxic.”
Also, the authority approved a 9.45% return on equity for UI, but immediately reduced it to 9.25% to address what regulators described as “performance and management issues.” The company had sought a 10.5% return on equity, up from the currently allowed 9.1%.
PURA’s new interim Chairman Tom Wiehl recused himself from the decision due to his recent involvement in the case while serving as legal and regulatory director at the state Office of Consumer Counsel.
Gov. Ned Lamont appointed Wiehl to lead the authority on Oct. 20, part of a broader effort to repair relationships between the state’s utilities and regulators.
Attorney General William Tong criticized the final decision Tuesday, calling it “disappointing news for Connecticut families.” Tong said that after months of legal attacks, UI succeeded in “running off its chief regulator,” referring to former PURA Chair Marissa Gillett’s resignation.
“For those who spent these last months fixated on personalities and politics, this decision is a stark reminder of what this fight was always about,” Tong said. “It was about millions upon millions of dollars that Connecticut families will now pay to increase United Illuminating’s bottom line. We cannot lose sight of that, and we must redouble our efforts to address the crisis of affordability in our state.”
Tong had previously praised PURA’s September draft decision, which authorized an increase of approximately $29 million, for cutting what he called “padded” expenses and “unjustified corporate profits.”
Consumer Counsel Claire Coleman, whose office represents ratepayers in utility proceedings, expressed disappointment Tuesday that some cost reductions and accountability measures her team advocated for were not retained in the final decision. However, she acknowledged the result “reflects the consensus reached through deliberations of the voting commissioners during particularly challenging times.”
Coleman noted the final decision gives UI more revenue than the company’s own stated bottom line for providing safe and adequate service, and urged the utility to accept the decision and cease filing appeals.
“This should allow the company to turn its focus toward improvements and efficiencies that can still be achieved in the delivery of electricity to customers,” Coleman said. Her office had calculated the bill impact at approximately $13 per month for average residential customers, slightly higher than PURA’s estimate.
UI’s last rate case was completed in 2023, when PURA approved a $23 million revenue increase. UI provides electric service to more than 347,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in 17 southwestern Connecticut communities.
The decision came amid ongoing legal disputes between Connecticut utilities and PURA over Gillett’s tenure. Gillett resigned earlier this month after five years leading the authority, during which utilities accused her of maintaining an anti-utility bias.
PURA also faces upcoming decisions on rate increase requests from Yankee Gas Co. and a proposed sale of Eversource’s Aquarion Water Co. to the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority.