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MidAmerican Energy Co. announced last week that heating prices going into the cold, Iowa winter will be significantly increased—likely by 46 to 96%.
The Des Moines-based utility has 774,000 natural gas customers in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, and South Dakota.
According to MidAmerican, the reason for the hike is not because of inflation or any government action, but from increased global demand for natural gas and limited production and inventory.
As a result, market prices for natural gas have more than doubled.
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“The higher market prices will affect a customer’s gas supply charge, which is the cost of the natural gas the customer uses,” the MidAmerican said in its announcement.
Impact will vary based on customer usage.
But that hasn’t stopped some Republicans, such as Iowa’s 1st District U.S. Rep. Ashley Hinson, from blaming the federal government. She posted a link on Facebook to a story that explains the real reason for the increase, yet she still claimed, “Life is less affordable with the Biden Administration and Speaker Pelosi in control of government.”
Hinson did, however, have a chance to save Iowans on their utility bills when she was in the Iowa House. She instead voted along with business interests to gut the state’s energy efficiency efforts.
Back in 2018, when Hinson was in the Iowa House of Representatives, she was one of 52 Republicans who voted for an Iowa bill capping how much utility companies spend on energy efficiency programs.
This means less money has been invested in programs like rebates to consumers who make efforts to improve energy efficiency. Since 2018, Iowa’s energy efficiency score dropped to 36th in the country because the bill led to a decline in savings for electric and gas.
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Assistance:
MidAmerican Energy Co. customers in Iowa may be able to receive assistance on their energy bills by visiting this link.
Nikoel Hytrek
10/17/21
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