Great Eastern Energy

Energy Deregulation

Energy Deregulation: Milestones

The history of energy regulation and deregulation in the United States is a long and interesting one, a winding road towards creating a more reliable, more affordable energy delivery system for our nation.

1882: Thomas Edison’s company, Edison Illuminating Company, creates the first investor-owned electric utility on Pearl Street Station in New York City. This first commercial electrical power distribution system supplied energy to 59 customers residing in lower Manhattan.

1935: In the middle of the Great Depression, the U.S. Congress enacts the Public Utility Holding Company Act (PUHCA), essentially creating public utilities and federally regulating public energy distribution in America. Prior to this event, the nation’s growing electrical grid was controlled by large private investor trusts.

1978: At the height of the 1970′s energy crisis, Congress enacts the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA). Designed to begin privatizing United States energy distribution, PURPA required public utilities to purchase energy generation from private companies when they could supply power at a lower cost than the public utility.

1992: Congress enacts the National Energy Policy Act of 1992, encouraging private market competition in wholesale energy generation. NEPA 1992 established a framework for transitioning the American power industry to a more deregulated private marketplace.

1996: The New York State Public Service Commission (NYPSC) approves plans by New York public utilities to give gas and electric customers access to private power suppliers, called Energy Service Companies (ESCOs).

1999: The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities implements deregulation, along similar lines as New York, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and California. By August 2000 – a year later – over 400,000 businesses and 70,000 residences in New Jersey were saving money with deregulated power.

2005: The Energy Policy Act of 2005 is enacted by the U.S. Congress, repealing the 1935 PUHCA law and transferring oversight of public utilities from the SEC to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).

Deregulation Means The Choice Is Yours

In the past, it was the utility company that enjoyed the power to choose. They chose how much to charge, how to profit from market fluctuations, how to deliver service, and how to treat customers who had nowhere else to go. In the world of regulated public utilities, the interests of the consumer all too often come last – the real power held away and apart from everyday people, the real choices made in favor of higher prices and more limited service options.

Energy deregulation creates a free marketplace where you can shop freely for your natural gas, just like you shop for any other product or service. No longer do the advantages of competitive supply bidding only benefit the powerful – and no longer are you shackled to an energy provider who doesn’t meet your needs. Deregulation puts you in charge.

When you sign up with Great Eastern Energy, we deliver something that a public utility never will: the ability to choose. You choose the best fixed or variable pricing plan for your needs. You choose the best balance of service options. You choose the best value.

Energy deregulation puts the power back into your hands.

Make the choice today. Learn more about how switching to Great Eastern Energy can save you money while delivering better natural gas service than your local utility can offer.