I want to replace RG&E with a local, community controlled public utility!

I want to replace RG&E with a local, community controlled public utility!

Did you know that we can vote out the foreign-owned corporation that owns and controls RG&E? RG&E is owned by a foreign multinational corporation called Iberdrola that extracts over $120 million in profits from our region every year. Rochester for Energy Democracy (RED) is Metro Justice’s campaign to replace foreign-owned RG&E in Rochester or Monroe County into a not for profit, locally controlled public utility.

RG&E's track record speaks volumes—surprise billing, exorbitant rates and shut offs, terrible customer service, and rising rates have plagued our community for far too long. In addition to being unresponsive to the needs of city residents, RG&E has all but ignored the impending climate crisis, continued to invest in fossil fuels, and lobbied against green energy policies. It's time for change.

  

 

2,817 signatures

By signing this petition, I support the call to replace RG&E with a locally owned and community controlled public utility that meets the needs of our communities instead of serving the greed of distant investors and CEOs. I want a public utility based on the principles of energy democracy:

  • Affordable Rates,
  • Local investment of ratepayer dollars to prioritize customer service and a reliable grid, 
  • A fast and equitable transition to zero greenhouse gas emissions, 
  • More good paying union jobs and a just transition for fossil fuel energy workers, 
  • Public ownership of the utility, where it is run by value-aligned general management and its current employees, governed by an elected Board of Directors, and has a real say for ratepayers. 

In particular, I call on elected leaders to take the first step and study whether and how a public utility could meet these goals.

Will you sign?

  • Maeve Gillen
    signed 2025-05-22 15:03:39 -0400
  • Taylor Howarth
    signed 2025-05-22 14:54:54 -0400
    no more price gouging for basic needs!
  • Joma Slone
    signed 2025-05-22 14:24:28 -0400
  • Leandro Santos
    signed 2025-05-22 13:57:23 -0400
  • Scott M Fearing
    signed 2025-05-22 13:48:09 -0400
    YES it is time for public utilities instead of for profit
  • Adrian Tremayne
    signed 2025-05-22 13:47:52 -0400
    Rates should be equal for all non-commercial customers, not based on the economic status of neighborhoods.
  • Vanessa Brooks
    signed 2025-05-22 13:36:21 -0400
    Please just help the American people.
  • Kristina Kirchgraber
    signed 2025-05-22 13:33:13 -0400
  • Eleanor McQuilkin Burns
    signed 2025-05-22 13:28:21 -0400
  • Adair Finucane
    signed 2025-05-22 13:26:51 -0400
  • Christopher Kelly
    signed 2025-05-22 13:24:16 -0400
  • Christina Hall
    signed 2025-05-22 13:12:57 -0400
  • Adrienne Turnbull-Reilly
    signed 2025-05-22 13:11:50 -0400
  • Tricia Hutto
    signed 2025-05-22 13:10:08 -0400
  • Dan Glading
    signed 2025-05-22 13:09:45 -0400
  • Michael Tomkinson
    signed 2025-05-22 13:05:35 -0400
    They have refused to speak to me about my excessive billing for over two years
  • Jonathan Hammond
    signed 2025-05-22 13:00:21 -0400
  • Julia A Payne-Lewis
    signed 2025-05-22 12:58:56 -0400
    Lets do this!
  • Deidre Smith
    signed 2025-05-22 12:55:52 -0400
  • Arthur Owens
    signed 2025-05-22 12:55:31 -0400
  • Heather Van Leuven
    signed 2025-05-22 12:53:53 -0400
  • Lori A Lippa
    signed 2025-05-22 12:53:49 -0400
  • Lisa Shaw
    signed 2025-05-22 12:51:32 -0400
  • John Locksley
    signed 2025-05-22 12:50:48 -0400
  • Emilye Crosby
    signed 2025-05-22 12:47:54 -0400
  • Emma Reynolds
    signed 2025-05-22 12:36:23 -0400
  • Nicole Delgrosso
    signed 2025-05-22 12:31:49 -0400
    In 2021 I had a water leak cause a flood in my apartment. For 8 months I lived somewhere else while repairs were done. I was on budget billing and received bills for several months that showed I had a credit. I assumed that was because minimal electric and no gas were being used. Three months after I moved out of that apartment RG&E took over $500 out of my checking account. When I called to inquire I was told this was a “correction” to my budget billing. I asked for an investigation and an itemized accounting of what that $500 was balancing. I received no further communication from RG&E. As far as I’m concerned, they stole that money from me. Just because they could.
  • Wesley Criblear
    signed 2025-05-22 12:31:28 -0400
  • Kory Roberts
    signed 2025-05-22 12:26:59 -0400
  • Andrea Martin
    signed 2025-05-22 12:22:14 -0400

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