Colorado Utility Bills Expected to Rise Under New Clean Heat Rules
Gas prices may finally be dipping below $2 a gallon, but that hasn’t made life much easier for Coloradans who are already stretched thin. Winter brings higher heating costs, the holidays bring pricier groceries, and many families are feeling the squeeze. In a moment like this, you might expect state regulators to avoid policies that drive costs even higher — but that’s not what happened this week.
On Monday, the Colorado Public Utilities Commission approved new rules that will significantly increase the cost of home heating as part of the state’s broader climate agenda. The updated “clean heat plan” requires natural gas utilities such as Xcel and Black Hills to cut greenhouse gas emissions 41% by 2035 compared to 2015 levels — nearly double the original legislative target of 22% by 2030, with just five additional years to achieve it.
According to Sengenberger, the new rule is unrealistic and financially punishing for the average Colorado household. Even though the commission claims it isn’t creating long-term mandates, it also notes that utilities’ future plans must align with Colorado’s overarching goal of reaching 100% emissions reduction by 2050 — effectively signaling that gas usage is expected to phase out entirely.
The controversy began with SB21-264, which originally required relatively small emissions cuts from utilities. But last year, Gov. Jared Polis’s Energy Office pushed regulators to adopt a far more aggressive 41% reduction target. That proposal was met with resistance from across the political spectrum — conservative think tanks, labor unions, and the Utility Consumer Advocate all argued that the goal was both expensive and technically unrealistic. Polis’s office later lowered its recommendation to 31%, yet the commission ultimately adopted the higher number anyway, aligning itself with environmental groups seeking faster action.
Critics warn that the new mandate all but guarantees rising utility bills, as ratepayers will be expected to help fund a transition away from natural gas toward electric appliances and heating systems. While utilities can make incremental progress through methane capture and pipeline improvements, those measures alone won’t come close to meeting the required reductions.
Meanwhile, the federal government seems to be shifting toward a broader energy strategy. The U.S. Department of Energy recently renamed the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden to the National Laboratory of the Rockies, signaling a move toward an “all energy sources” approach aimed at lowering costs while meeting growing energy demand.
Sengenberger argues that Colorado should adopt the same mindset — supporting nuclear energy, treating natural gas as a key transition fuel, updating clean-coal technologies, and streamlining regulations that slow wind and solar development. He says the state must move away from symbolic climate targets and embrace a practical, affordable path toward emissions reductions.
Jimmy Sengenberger is an investigative journalist, public speaker, and longtime Denver talk-radio host. More at Jimmysengenberger.com or on X @SengCenter.
