TVA says no to electricity rate hike

After much debate, the Tennessee Valley Authority has decided to keep the region's electricity rates in place for at least the next year, The Associated Press reports.

According to the media outlet, after a long meeting on Thursday, TVA's board of directors voted to approve the $11.2 billion budget plan to begin October 1, however this plan will not include higher electricity rates for residents in Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina and Virginia.

Through the newly worked budget TVA has kept rates in place despite $290 million in losses in the first three quarters of the fiscal year. This setback was the result of a warm winter that kept electricity use down.

"We've had a challenging year, but we've gotten through that – almost through that – and we've put together a budget for next year without a rate increase, and so I think that's a tribute to the workers at TVA," TVA CEO Tom Kilgore stated.

All over the country, residents are experiencing electricity rate increases. According to the Beatrice Daily Sun, Beatrice, Nebraska electricity rates could soon increase if approved by the Beatrice Board of Public Works.

But even with these increases, energy deregulation has given residents in many states the option to switch energy providers.