Hearings set for public comment on Pepco rate hike

WASHINGTON — In December, Pepco asked Maryland regulators for a rate hike that could boost customers’ bills by nearly $5 a month.

Pepco customers who would like sound off about the hike can do so at public meetings this week.

The Maryland Public Service Commission is having two hearings to allow public comment. The first hearing will be held Monday at 7 p.m. at the Montgomery County Executive Office Building, 101 Monroe St. in Rockville.

Anyone wishing to speak can sign up at the door. Speakers will be heard in the order in which they signed up.

On Wednesday, another hearing will be held at the Municipal Center Council Chambers, at 4500 Knox Rd. in College Park. That hearing will also begin at 7 p.m.

Pepco officials say the duration and frequency of outages have been reduced, thanks to an aggressive program of trimming trees from the paths of power lines and upgrading the utility’s infrastructure.

The request for a rate increase, referred to as a “rate case,” is not related to the recent news that Pepco has agreed to a deal to sell the utility to Chicago-based Exelon for nearly $7 billion.

That deal is still being worked out and must be approved by federal and state regulators.

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WTOP’s Kate Ryan contributed to this report. Follow @WTOP on Twitter and WTOP on Facebook.

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