Missouri has some of the laxest laws in the country regarding predatory lending. As the power of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is continually threatened, our state refuses every year to adopt modest regulations. Cities have no choice but to take matters into their own hands to protect citizens from spiraling and crushing debt.

Our executive director joins faith leaders in weighing in on municipal reforms this week in the Springfield News Leader.

#Moleg2019: Utility Consumers Unscathed

The 2019 Missouri legislative session has come to an end and while many bills made it past the finish line, utility consumer bills were successfully blocked.

Consumers Council of Missouri, all said and done, had a successful 2019 session with two major victories. We helped stop an attempt in the Missouri House to raise water rates by 15%! And in the last week, we helped prevent a measure to block lower cost environmentally friendly electricity to our state’s energy markets. This bill passed the House but was blocked in the Senate before it could become become law!

Thanks for all your help in ensuring that consumers were heard in the Missouri State Capitol.

In the final days of the Missouri legislative session, a measure that will help bring lower cost electricity to energy markets in our state is as risk of being railroaded.

After 5 years of facing legal roadblocks, the high voltage Grain Belt transmission line is about to become a reality, facilitating the flow of primarily-renewable power from Kansas through to Illinois and beyond. But legislation that would stop it the transmission line project (HB 1062) passed the House of Representatives by 115-35, and is now pending in the state Senate.

Consumer groups have supported the Grain Belt transmission project throughout the legal and regulatory challenges of the past 5 years at the Missouri Public Service Commission. Consumers Council of Missouri supports the project because it will open up more competitive markets for electricity, including significantly lower cost wind power, to cities across the state.

The project could bring much needed competition in electric generation for the St. Louis (Ameren Missouri) area.  It will also benefit many municipal electric systems, such as Columbia Water & Light, that have contracted to have access to the cheaper energy.

Even better for the consumer, the Grain Belt project does not use ratepayer funds to make the investment and there are no state tax subsidies involved. This project is a good deal for Missouri, and will employ many good construction jobs as it is being built.

Help ensure the Grain Belt project can add to the bottom line of Missouri consumers by lowering energy costs in our state. Contact your state senator today and let them know that we need access to cheaper electricity options.