FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Kendl Kobbervig, Communications Director
[email protected] | (608) 575-8798
Wednesday, October 22, 2025
[See photos from the event here]
Senator Hashmi, lawmakers call for action on soaring power bills at Fredericksburg town hall
Clean Virginia’s statewide tour spotlights Virginia’s energy affordability crisis
FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — Sen. Ghazala Hashmi joined fellow lawmakers, local leaders and residents Tuesday night in Fredericksburg to demand action on rising electricity costs and monopoly utility power during the third stop of Clean Virginia’s “The Energy Bills Are Too Damn High!” town hall tour.
The event drew a packed audience of nearly 100 attendees for a conversation on how Dominion Energy’s influence and data center-driven energy demand are driving up costs across the Commonwealth, and what policy reforms are needed to restore fairness and accountability.
Featured speakers included Senator Ghazala Hashmi (SD15), Delegate Joshua Cole (HD65), House of Delegates candidate Nicole Cole (HD66), and Eric Bonds, a University of Mary Washington sociology professor.
“Virginians are paying the price for an outdated system that rewards monopoly utilities for spending more, not for serving people better,” said Senator Ghazala Hashmi, Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor. “State leaders have a duty to fix that. It’s time for a modern, transparent regulatory framework that puts families first, not corporate shareholders.”
Speakers discussed how data center expansion and the outsized political influence of monopoly utilities are driving up energy costs for Virginia households; Dominion is currently seeking state approval to raise the average residential bill by $21 a month. Lawmakers called for reforms to rein in monopoly control, curb fossil fuel dependence, and prevent utilities from passing unnecessary costs on to customers.
“Energy bills are rising because Virginia’s monopoly utilities have written the rules in their own favor,” said Brennan Gilmore, Executive Director of Clean Virginia. “Tonight made clear that Virginians are ready for leaders who will stand up to corporate influence and put working families at the center of our energy future.”
Clean Virginia’s “The Energy Bills Are Too Damn High!” tour continues this week with its final stop in Blacksburg on Thursday, October 23. For more information, visit www.toodamnhigh.org.
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Clean Virginia is a nonpartisan advocacy nonprofit with an affiliated political action committee, the Clean Virginia Fund. Clean Virginia works to end utility monopoly corruption in politics to promote clean, affordable energy and a government that works for all Virginians.