Delaware electricity customers have another formal opportunity Wednesday evening to comment on Delmarva Power’s proposed electric distribution increase, now valued at $75.8 million in additional annual revenue from customers statewide.
The Public Service Commission scheduled a hybrid public-comment session for 6 to 8 p.m. Sept. 23 at the Cannon Building in Dover and online. The session concerns Docket No. 25-1555, the base-rate case Delmarva Power filed in December 2025. It is not a final vote on the company’s request.
The proposal began at roughly $67.8 million and later rose to $75.8 million, according to a Sept. 16 account from the Delaware Division of the Public Advocate. Base rates cover the utility’s distribution system and appear in the delivery portion of a bill; they are distinct from the wholesale electricity supply charge.
That distinction matters because customers have already absorbed a separate increase. The Public Advocate said Delmarva’s default supply price rose 18% to 20% on June 1, which the company estimated would add about 9%, or $14.64 a month, to the overall bill of a typical residential customer using 811 kilowatt-hours. The pending base-rate case would add another layer if regulators approve some or all of the request.
While the full case remains under review, Delmarva has been collecting an interim increase. The utility initially sought $51.8 million on an interim basis, then reduced that request to $45.9 million. In August, the commission authorized $34.3 million, equal to half of the increase then at issue.
The lower interim amount reflects a 2026 law that changed Delaware’s process while rate cases are pending. The Public Advocate’s explanation of Senate Bill 326 says a utility may collect no more than 50% of its requested increase after seven months and 75% after 12 months. Any interim amount remains subject to refund with interest if the commission’s final award is lower.
Delmarva has appealed the commission’s interim-rate order to Superior Court, arguing for authority to collect more before the final decision. That appeal is separate from the underlying regulatory review, where commission staff, the Public Advocate and other parties examine the company’s costs, investments and requested return.
Public comments do not replace the technical evidence, but they enter the record considered by the five-member commission. Customers can address affordability, reliability, service quality and the practical effects of higher bills. Formal evidentiary hearings and a recommendation will precede the commission’s final rate decision.
For Delaware households and small businesses, Wednesday’s session is therefore a checkpoint rather than a conclusion. The amount ultimately approved may differ from both the $75.8 million request and the $34.3 million interim increase already authorized, and the court appeal could separately alter what Delmarva may collect while the case proceeds.
