In Case You Missed It

ICYMI: GOP Tax Reform is Creating Jobs, Increasing Wages, Growing the Economy - And Cutting Your Monthly Energy and Water Bills

June 20, 2018

ICYMI: This week marks six months since Congress passed H.R. 1, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, and Americans are reaping the benefits. Some 90 percent of wage earners now have higher take-home pay and companies of all sizes are raising wages, offering bonuses, and increasing 401(k) matches. 

We’ve talked a lot about the substantial benefits that opening a small fraction of Alaska’s non-wilderness Coastal Plain will bring, but that’s just one of the positive developments the GOP tax reform bill has in store for our nation’s energy. The cut in corporate tax rates from 35% to 21% is also affecting your utility bills. Americans for Tax Reform recently catalogued 102 utilities around the country that are cutting rates and using the savings for infrastructure upgrades, or to prevent future rate increases.

One estimate, by the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, found that utilities will save about $1.1 billion nationwide this year alone. That figure will grow over time, rising to $5.2 billion in 2020. And those benefits are reaching every corner of the country, including Alaska.

Just last Friday, AEL&P, Juneau’s electric company, asked the Regulatory Commission of Alaska for permission to lower rates by 6.73 percent starting August 1. If the request is approved, thousands of Alaskans could also receive partial refunds for bills paid between January 1 and August 1. The decrease in corporate taxes means AEL&P would transfer $2.4 million in profit back to its customers.

The takeaway is clear: tax cuts are working. Lower rates are leading to utility savings, which are being passed on to customers in the form of lower electric bills, lower gas bills, and lower water bills—yet another way that the GOP tax reform bill is helping Americans keep more of their hard-earned dollars.