A newly introduced Delaware bill would strengthen protections for utility customers across the state, targeting practices that lawmakers say have contributed to repeated rate increases.
The legislation, which amends Title 26 of the Delaware Code governing the Public Service Commission, builds on consumer protections established in Senate Bill 60 earlier in 2025.
Among its key provisions, the bill would require greater transparency in how public utilities communicate rates to customers. It would also mandate regular management audits of certain utilities and require accounting reviews each time a utility files for a rate increase.
The bill would limit how much money utilities can collect through temporary “interim rates” before the Commission has officially ruled on a rate increase request. It would also bar utilities from passing certain expenses on to ratepayers and require the Commission to explain its reasoning when it accepts settlement agreements.
A significant portion of the bill is aimed directly at Delmarva Power, which lawmakers say has been spending on infrastructure at a level well above what the Commission’s own reliability standards require. According to the bill, Delmarva Power’s capital spending is driven in part by its parent company’s goal of growing earnings by expanding its rate base — the total value of its capital assets — which in turn leads to frequent requests for rate increases.
The legislation specifically targets what are called “non-mandatory projects” — work that, by definition, is not required to keep the electrical system reliable. The bill would cap how much of those non-mandatory costs Delmarva Power can recover from customers, tying that limit to the size of the company’s rate base.
Supporters of the bill stress that these limits would not affect Delmarva Power’s ability to restore electricity after storms or continue its tree-trimming and vegetation management programs.
