by Kate Yoder And Leah Larsengrist
“This story was originally published grist. Sign up for Grist Weekly newsletter here“
Relations between states are becoming so strained over fossil fuels and different approaches to renewables, some politicians are calling for “separation.”
Utah Republican celebrated Last week when PacifiCorp, one of the West’s largest utilities, announced it would stop serving customers in Washington state. PacifiCorp operates mainly in Utah, but also in Wyoming and Idaho — and, for some Utah legislators, in blue states like California and Oregon. Utah legislators were ahead They are pressured to break the utility bond Along with states with more aggressive climate policies. Now, PacifiCorp is handing over 140,000 of its customers in Washington — along with two wind farms, a natural gas plant and other energy infrastructure — to Portland General Electric for $1.9 billion.
“We want divorce from three states that don’t look like Utah,” said House Speaker Mike Schultz, Republican of Utah. “This is the first step forward.”
In Notice of salePacifiCorp noted that navigating “divergent policies” among the six states it serves has “created tremendous stress,” a challenge that has affected its financial stability. Utah is still there heavily dependent on coalWhile California, Oregon and Washington are moving forward with policies to move away from fossil fuels. For example, Washington aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions About half by 2030Using the 1990 level as a baseline. As of January, Washington wants PacificCorp to stop charging Washington customers for coal generation. Cost reduction for ratepayers by $68 million compared to the status quo — and potentially shifting coal-related costs back to states like Utah.
It’s not just about money, it’s about identity. “Certainly, it seems to be a culture war thing,” said Matthew Burgess, an environmental economist at the University of Wyoming who studies political polarization. He sees Republican politicians playing up cultural tensions to appeal to their base, especially where Coal’s long-term decline Fueled economic anxiety and discontent. “Some of this rhetoric that perhaps blames what’s going on in the industry of coastal progressives and their climate histrionics — you can see how that kind of message can be resonant or cathartic with communities that are in real trouble,” Burgess said.
as Division increases Between blue states demanding clean energy and red states seeking to protect coal, oil and natural gas, the economic reality of grid sharing has become a point of contention. All this is unfolding at a time when concerns over rising costs have gripped the country. Electricity prices have increasedThe average U.S. home’s energy bill is 30 percent higher in 2025 than in 2021 — a steep increase, but still in line with overall inflation. While Republicans often blame environmental regulations for rising electricity prices, Democrats usually blame Trump. Attack on clean energy or The rise of power-hungry data centers.
Tensions rose in Utah over energy cost sharing with the blue state in 2024, when Rocky Mountain Power, Utah’s largest electricity supplier and part of PacifiCorp, proposed A 30 percent rate increase For most customers in the state. The utility said the increase was necessary to meet the cost of building new infrastructure and complying with regulations in various states. Utah Republican Grilled Rocky Mountain Power and suggested it might cut ties with PacificaCorp over progressive climate policies in California, Oregon and Washington. Last year, Utah’s Republican governor, Spencer Cox, signed a resolution encouraging an “interstate compact for regional energy cooperation” with Wyoming and Idaho.
“Sadly, we know Utahns are paying more for power as decisions are made in coastal states, Oregon and Washington,” Cox said. said at this time. “But it’s so much more than that.”
This theme has popped up in other parts of the country. Last September, five Republican-led states — Montana, North Dakota, Mississippi, Louisiana and Arkansas — asked federal regulators to halt a $22 billion transmission expansion designed to connect upper Midwestern cities to the Great Plains. They argued that the cost of the project would be shared Effectively forcing their ratepayers to subsidize wind and solar To facilitate clean energy goals of democratic states.
Yet while Republicans complain about the cost of building clean energy, Democrats blame the cost of keeping fossil fuels alive, noting that the Trump administration is forcing expensive coal plants in Washington, Colorado, Indiana and Michigan to stay open past their retirement dates. Michigan coal plant cost ratepayer $80 million in the first four months That’s to run past the planned retirement date, according to the chair of the Michigan Public Service Commission.
“Clean energy is just the way we’re going,” said Meredith Connolly, director of policy and strategy at Climate Solutions, a clean energy nonprofit in the Pacific Northwest. “It’s really a question of how fast can we get there, and do you create these headwinds that slow the transition or try to get an unfair leg up on fossil fuels? These are the stupid things that we’re seeing that actually increase electricity costs.”
There are a lot of pressures affecting utilities — market forces, shakeups Get more power to power data centersand even climate-driven risks. In many states, particularly in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions, replacement of older appliances, protection of power lines and other measures to withstand more extreme weather conditions A major driver of rising costs. In California, infrastructure upgrades to reduce wildfire risk (and thus liability costs) are a key factor behind rising electricity bills. For example, PacifiCorp faced Multiple cases for spreading fire including poorly maintained equipment in Oregon and California and agreed to pay $2.2 billion in settlements.
Some climate advocates worry what will happen if segmenting the energy market along party lines becomes a trend. “Our fortunes are tied across the energy market,” Connolly said. “And so these would be quite artificial lines.”
This article originally appeared on grist A https://grist.org/politics/culture-war-electricity-utah-washington-divorce-pacificorp/.
GRIST is a nonprofit, independent media organization dedicated to telling stories about climate solutions and a just future. Learn more at Grist.org
–
This is the story Originally published by grist.
***
–
Photo credit: splash
