Vindman Hears from the Virginians on the Merger Between Dominion Energy and NextEra Energy, 80% are Opposed

Washington, D.C. - Congressman Eugene Vindman (Va.-07) heard from more than 950 Virginians in a district-wide survey, and the results were clear: respondents overwhelmingly oppose the merger between Dominion Energy and NextEra Energy.

"Virginians have made their voices heard loud and clear: they do not want a merger that puts corporate profits ahead of affordable, reliable energy," said Vindman. "More than 950 people in Virginia's Seventh District took the time to tell me that they oppose this deal. Many of them are deeply concerned about the impact it could have on their utility bills. I share their concern. Virginians should not be forced to pay more so that Wall Street investors can increase profits. The Virginia State Corporation Commission should listen to the people it represents and reject this merger."

The survey asked constituents whether they supported or opposed the merger and gauged their level of concern about potential increases in household utility bills. Earlier this month, Vindman sent a letter to members of the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) urging them to reject the proposed merger.

Below are responses submitted by Virginia's Seventh District residents who took the survey:

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"Large mergers never help the lower and middle class consumers." - Paul, Spotsylvania

"This change would be a catastrophe for many individuals in this area." - Gwen, Prince William

"Virginia has enough local monopolies jacking up prices. This will only harm families that are already facing increased energy costs." - Tristan, Fredericksburg

"We are already paying high utility bills and it would be hard to add more. A lot of people are already having problems bringing food to the table." - Rose, Prince William

"I oppose this merger. At a time when families are already being asked to absorb the costs, we need greater accountability and competition, not greater consolidation." - Kristen, Culpeper

"I'm afraid a merger of energy companies this size will raise rates to where the average person will have a difficult time paying for energy." - Kevin, Caroline

BACKGROUND

NextEra is well-known for having implemented what many recognize as the largest residential electricity rate increase in history at the end of 2025. High energy bills already top the list of concerns for Virginians and Vindman has heard from hundreds of families who will not be able to endure record-setting rate hikes on top of their existing burdens.

Between May 2021-May 2026, Floridians who rely on NextEra's subsidiary, Florida Power & Light, have seen their utility bills rise by 33 percent.

As a founding member of the Congressional Lowering Utility Bills Caucus, Vindman has been a champion for bringing down utility costs.

In May, he introduced the Home Energy Affordability Act, legislation that would help protect consumers from repeated utility rate hikes by limiting electric utilities to one rate increase request every 365 days. This bill is based on a proposal that has received overwhelming support from constituents across Virginia's Seventh District and would amend the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act of 1978 to require states to consider policies restricting how often regulated electric utilities can seek rate increases.

He also introduced the Utility Hikes Transparency Act, legislation that would create the first comprehensive, machine-readable federal database of retail utility rate changes in the United States. The tracker would be updated quarterly which would include approved and effective electric and natural gas utility rate changes for investor-owned utilities, cooperatives, and municipally owned utilities nationwide.

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