Publicly-owned electric utility

A Riverwest tutor described surviving three home gas leaks, constant rate hikes despite $1.6 billion in profit, and warned about data-center risks being shifted onto ratepayers.

A licensed IBEW electrician and DSA member urged his union brothers and sisters to consider bargaining with the city instead of a for-profit corporation.

A clinical health psychologist described a patient enduring 90-degree nights without air conditioning because running it cost too much.

Milwaukee DSA co-chair cited a 12% two-year rate increase, Milwaukee bills over $580/month, and reliability data showing public power has half the outage time.

A resident argued We Energies is guaranteed profits even for bad decisions like building an unneeded coal plant ratepayers must pay for.

A Riverwest healthcare worker and librarian called public power the evidence-based solution for health, affordability and emergency preparedness.

A UWM student described a $600 monthly winter bill split with four roommates caused by a landlord's broken window.

A homeowner said his professionally installed solar sat idle for seven months awaiting We Energies interconnection, burning his peak season, while the utility pays 4 cents per kWh and resells at 17–18 cents.

A former Los Angeles public works inspector described LADWP's 12,000-person, largely in-house unionized workforce as a model for secure public power jobs.

DSA co-chair and union organizer cited a 15,000-signature petition and accused We Energies of skipping the hearing while donating to politicians.

An MSOE student reported a $350 bill during January's minus-13-degree arctic blast and got only LEDs and a night light from the utility's efficiency kit; also cited a $13,000 We Energies donation to Lt. Gov. Rodriguez.

The 19th Assembly District representative called for a publicly owned, democratically run utility and pledged state action to end Act 10's limits.

Speaking for Rep. Darrin Madison, described constituents paying up to 20% of income on utilities and called for guaranteed access to affordable, clean, democratically controlled energy.

A teacher and Power to the People secretary invoked Mayor Daniel Hoan — 'businesses may quit, your government can't' — against We Energies' guaranteed 9.8% profit.

A working-class single mother from the south side described choosing between food and lights and daily streetlight outages on her block.

An East Side renter said her laundry froze to the floor during January's cold and We Energies' only advice was cling wrap on windows.

A UWM student and YDSA co-chair said rising bills are pricing students out of enrollment, hitting Black and brown students hardest.

A recent transplant from Madison said Milwaukee wages are lower but bills and rent are higher, and urged the board to find the courage to act.

A laid-off electrician and Brower volunteer said the We Energies CEO makes over $11 million while neighborhoods suffer regular blackouts.

A UWM student said high bills are pricing students out of school as enrollment plummets, especially among Black and brown students.

A single mother and community advocate cited three rate increases in three years and pointed to a friend's Madison solar home that produced a negative bill in July.

A former lead canvasser for Power to the People said her We Energies bill runs $1,000–$1,100 a month for her small Greenfield house.

An MPS educator and MTEA member argued public power is a logical, systems-thinking response to the climate crisis, not a harebrained idea.

President of AFSCME Local 47 — whose members include Milwaukee Waterworks workers — announced the local unanimously endorsed the campaign and invoked the sewer socialist legacy.

A Green Party member noted Oconomowoc's public utility gets better rates than Milwaukee residents and that radio hosts mocked the hearing.

A climate activist and artist argued We Energies abandoned its founding public-utility mission and is now shareholder-driven.

A Riverwest duplex owner said her We Energies bill rose from $200–250 to over $400 a month in eight years, forcing rent increases.

Spoke about energy costs in a cold climate and urged the utility be publicly owned with a backup provider and generators for homes.

A Bay View DSA organizer argued public ownership would let Milwaukee push back against AI, data centers and surveillance technologies used against working people.

An attorney and self-described non-socialist said the reform echoes Progressive Era utility fights and urged alders to trust residents with a referendum.

A Walker's Point DSA member detailed fossil fuel health harms, We Energies' repeated coal plant extensions, a $1.5 billion gas plant, and a decade of fighting rooftop solar.

A teacher and DSA member asked the council to add safeguards preventing a private corporation from taking over again after a public buyout.