What a rate case is, and how one actually works
A rate case is the public proceeding in which a regulated utility asks its state commission for permission to change what it charges. It is the closest thing to a price negotiation that a monopoly ever has, and the customers are represented in it whether they know it or not.
Who is in the room
Three parties matter. The utility files the case and carries the burden of proving its costs. The commission (a public service commission, public utilities commission, or in some states a corporation commission) decides. And a consumer advocate, a state office or an independent group, argues the household side, usually with its own accountants and engineers. Large industrial customers, environmental groups and cities often intervene too, each arguing about who should pay what share.
What the utility is asking for
The core of a base rate case is a number called the revenue requirement: the total the utility says it needs each year to cover operating costs, pay for the equipment it has built, and earn a return for its investors on that equipment. The return on equity is the most argued line in the case, because a single percentage point on a large utility's rate base is worth tens of millions of dollars a year. The commission also decides how the total is split between residential, commercial and industrial customers, which is why a "5 percent increase" for the company can be a 9 percent increase for homes.
The timeline
Most states give the commission a fixed window to decide, commonly seven to eleven months after filing, and many allow temporary rates to take effect part way through, subject to refund if the final order comes in lower. The pattern is: filing, a period for staff and intervenors to study the books and file testimony, public hearings where anyone can speak, evidentiary hearings that look like a trial, then either a settlement among the parties or a litigated order. New rates usually start on the first day of a month soon after the order.
The ask is not the outcome
This is the single most useful thing to know. Utilities file high because the case is a negotiation, and commissions almost always approve less. In the cases on this site, decisions have landed anywhere from a modest trim to a small fraction of the request. Con Edison asked for roughly $18 to $27 a month on a typical bill and was granted about $4 for electricity. FirstEnergy's Ohio utilities asked for $190 million a year and received $34 million. A headline that says "utility seeks 22 percent increase" is reporting the opening bid.
Base rates are only part of the bill
A base rate case sets the charges for delivering power and running the company. Fuel and purchased power costs usually move through a separate rider that adjusts every few months without a full case. Storm recovery, grid upgrades and energy efficiency programs often ride on their own surcharges too. And in the states where households choose a supplier, the supply price is set by the market rather than by the commission. The bill guide shows which line each of these lands on.
Where to find yours
Type your ZIP or utility on the home page. Each case page links the docket, the utility's own filing and the reporting we used, and says what the request would do to a typical bill.