R Street Institute Releases First State-by-State Electricity Competition Scorecard

Report Ranks Texas Top in the Country; Alabama Comes in Dead Last.

WASHINGTON–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Today, the R Street Institute, a pro-market, limited-government think tank released a new scorecard assessing and grading each state on how competitive their electricity markets are by examining factors such as retail choice in electricity and the degree to which individual states are fostering competition in their electricity markets. The authors suggest specific strategies each state can implement to further improve its retail electricity competition.

The State-By-State Scorecard on Electricity Competition also compares the competitiveness of each state’s retail electricity offerings and highlights policy solutions that have been successfully implemented at the state level to enhance competition.

State Grades:

Alabama: F

Alaska: D

Arizona: C-

Arkansas: D+

California: C+

Colorado: C

Connecticut: C+

Delaware: B

District of Columbia: B+

Florida: D

Georgia: D

Hawaii: C-

Idaho: D-

Illinois: B+

Indiana: D

Iowa: D

Kansas: D+

Kentucky: D+

Louisiana: D+

Maine: B

Maryland: C

Massachusetts: B-

Michigan: C

Minnesota: D-

Mississippi: D-

Missouri: D

Montana: C-

Nevada: D+

New Hampshire: B-

New Jersey: B-

New Mexico: D

New York: C+

North Carolina: C-

North Dakota: D

Ohio: B+

Oklahoma: D

Oregon: C-

Pennsylvania: B+

Rhode Island: B

South Carolina: D+

South Dakota: D

Tennessee: D

Texas: A-

Utah: D-

Vermont: C-

Virginia: C+

Washington: D

West Virginia: D

Wisconsin: D-

Wyoming: D-

Note: We have omitted Nebraska—which is served entirely by public power utilities—from this scorecard. We have, however, included the District of Columbia, which is served by an Investor Owned Utility.

Statement from Kent Chandler, Resident Senior Fellow in Energy and Environment Policy, R Street Institute:

“Consumers demand choices and alternatives, and the provision of electricity shouldn’t be an exception to that expectation. Advancing competition and choice in electricity, and giving consumers the tools and data that they need to make informed decisions is a moral and economic imperative. If America wants affordable electricity and to win the global advanced manufacturing and artificial intelligence race, states across the country must grapple with traditional monopolies and red tape in this sector to ensure all customers benefit from well-implemented retail choice that meaningfully empowers them to make their own energy decisions, while ensuring remaining regulation keeps utilities in check.”

To develop the scorecard, the authors identified a key set of factors that guided their research and recommendations, including:

• States’ approaches to customer choice and competitive foundations;
• Role and treatment of rate-regulated monopolies;
• Alternatives within a traditionally regulated utility system;
• Wholesale competition and regional transmission organizations (RTOs);
• Price caps and limits on product differentiation;
• Smart meters and metering data;
• Customer education and access;
• Regulatory staffing and retail market oversight;
• State utility consumer advocates; and
• Complaint filing and resolution, among others.

To read more about each state and the methodology behind the scorecard, click here. For more information about the R Street Institute and our mission and impact, visit https://www.rstreet.org/about-r-street/.

About the Authors:

Chris Villarreal is an associate fellow in energy and environmental policy at the R Street Institute. Chris focuses on policy and regulatory guidance on matters relating to distributed energy resources, grid modernization, performance-based ratemaking, and distribution system planning.

Kent Chandler is a resident senior fellow in energy and environmental policy at the R Street Institute, leading the organization’s positions, strategy, and engagement on electricity policy.

Michael Giberson is a senior fellow in energy policy at the R Street Institute where he focuses on federal electric power and related energy policy issues.

About the R Street Institute

The R Street Institute (RSI) is a leading think tank focused on solving complex public policy challenges through free markets and limited, effective government. RSI consistently offers pragmatic, real solutions that foster American innovation, bolster competition, and safeguard individual liberty—all with the understanding that life in a democratic society sometimes requires compromises that don’t necessarily represent first, best solutions. Founded in 2012, RSI is headquartered in Washington, D.C. with offices in California, Georgia, Ohio, Texas, and Virginia. Learn more at www.rstreet.org and follow us on X at @RSI and on LinkedIn.

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