CCLP comments on Xcel Energy’s proposed rate increase

CCLP comments on Xcel Energy's proposed rate increase

by Milena Tayah | Jun 22, 2026

Consumer Protections, Family Economic Security, Income, Public Comment, Research and Policy Analysis, Testimony

On Tuesday, June 16, 2026, Milena Tayah, Policy Advocate at CCLP, provided comments to the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) regarding Xcel Energy's proposed rate increase on Colorado consumers' energy bills. Click here to learn more about the proposed rate increase.

Good Afternoon Chair and members of the Public Utilities Commission,

My name is Milena Tayah, and I am a Policy Advocate at Colorado Center on Law and Policy, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization advancing the rights of every Coloradan. We focus on improving access to food, health, housing, and income through litigation, legislation, research and policy analysis to ensure that all Coloradans have what they need to succeed.

I want to start by thanking the commission for the opportunity to provide open comments today. We have been reviewing the rate increase request by Xcel Energy and have a few comments to consider as you determine next steps.

Today, I have preliminary data that I can share from CCLP's Self-Sufficiency Standard Report scheduled to be published later this year. The Self-Sufficiency Standard is defined as the amount of income necessary to meet the basic needs of working-age families in Colorado without public or private assistance. The report shows that 27% of working-age households in Colorado have incomes below the cost of basic needs. Just looking at housing alone, 37.2% of Colorado households who rent report their housing cost is more than 50% of their income. Increasing utilities will only increase this disparity.

Colorado residents have already been absorbing energy bill increases for the last five years, at least. Between May 2021 and May 2026, the average Colorado residential energy bill has increased by 27.5% per Heatmap News and MIT. These increases have occurred while Coloradans are not seeing the same increase in their wages or salaries. This will force Coloradans to go into collections, making it impossible to get out of poverty. To ask them to pay more when they feasibly cannot, is not a viable and sustainable solution to Xcel's request.

Rather than ask Colorado consumers, who are already having difficulties becoming or staying financially stable, corporations like those operating large data centers and other large consumers of energy should be asked to shoulder this rise in costs. We ask Xcel Energy to consider assigning or allocating their rate increase request to large data centers who consume more energy and electricity on their own compared to Colorado residents. On the low end per IAEI Magazine, a single data center can consume power at the equivalency to powering 75,000 households. Hyperscale data centers demand a nearly unimaginable amount of energy. On the high end, per the International Energy Agency, a typical hyperscale data center might use 100 megawatts, which is as much electricity as 100,000 households. Colorado has 56 data centers with 47 in the Denver Area, and six in Colorado Springs. If we take those data points and compare the 47 data centers in the Denver area, it equates to 3.5 million to 4.7 million households in regard to utility usage. To visualize this, that is the size of Adams, Arapahoe, Jefferson, Denver, and Douglas counties together.

On behalf of CCLP and struggling Coloradans across the state, we implore the PUC and Xcel Energy to come together to find another solution to address these issues that does not outsource the burden on Colorado households.

Thank you for your time.

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