Gov. Kay Ivey signs bill giving governor more control over PSC

Gov. Kay Ivey Thursday signed a bill that would give the governor significantly more power over the state’s utility regulator, ending a months-long battle over Alabama’s high electricity rates and what the state government would do about them.

The signature came just a day after the Senate radically altered HB 475, sponsored by Rep. Mack Butler, R-Rainbow City. The bill originally required the Alabama Public Service Commission to hold regular hearings on rate increases.

But the Senate turned the bill into a version of SB 360, sponsored by Sen. Clyde Chambliss, R-Prattville, that would expand the PSC to seven members; allow Ivey to appoint four new members this summer and direct the next governor to create a secretary of energy who would supervise the PSC. The PSC would not be able able to hold a formal rate hearing until 2029, and only if the secretary of energy or five of the seven PSC members call for it.

“I have signed the bill and will look forward to building on my record of strong appointments to the PSC,” Ivey said in a statement Thursday. “Alabama is a top 10 state when it comes to cost of living, and we are the number one state for plain affordability. As I have said before, for Alabama to remain the best state to live, work and raise a family, we have to grow the state, while keeping our cost of living low.”



https://alabamareflector.com/2026/04/02/gov-kay-ivey-signs-bill-giving-governor-more-control-over-psc/