Alabama Supreme Court upholds ruling keeping nonprofit out of PSC docket

The Alabama Supreme Court Friday upheld a lower court ruling preventing a nonprofit organization from weighing in on how Alabama Power charges customers for fuel used to generate electricity.

The court said that the Public Service Commission acted within its jurisdiction in denying  Energy Alabama, which advocates for more renewable energy use in the state, the ability to intervene in a docket to decide the rate ECR (Energy Cost Recovery) that Alabama Power gets to charge its customers.

“The Legislature did not establish an all-purpose right of intervention into any and all commission business,” Associate Justice Will Parker wrote in the ruling issued Friday.

Daniel Tait, executive director for Energy Alabama, said Friday in a statement “we’re not deterred” even with the ruling.

“We will keep pushing for lower bills and more transparency at the commission,” he said. “Alabama Power customers cannot continue paying some of the highest bills in the country. We believe that the public deserves a seat at the table.”

A message was sent to Alabama Power on Monday seeking comment.

ECR is the amount that the power company is allowed to charge customers when it buys the fuel it needs to generate electricity. Alabama Power submits a filing each month that the PSC uses to decide the appropriate rate. The rate fluctuates based on the price of fuel at the time.

The PSC first set the rate in 1981, but then opened other proceedings in 2005 and 2008 and increased the “factor” both times, according to the ruling. The PSC may also issue consent orders to adjust the rate ECR, which the agency has done using the most recent docket in 2008.

In March 2024, shortly after Alabama Power submitted its monthly filing for rate ECR, Energy Alabama sought to intervene in the 2008 docket. However, the PSC denied Energy Alabama in August because “there is no pending Rate ECR ‘proceeding’” in which Energy Alabama may intervene.

Energy Alabama appealed the decision to the Montgomery Circuit Court in December 2024. Montgomery Circuit Court Judge Brooke Reid ruled against Energy Alabama in August 2025, saying that the PSC did not make its decision based on fraud or reach a decision that did not align with the evidence.