California residents have experienced the steepest rise in electricity costs in the nation, with average bills climbing 39% over the past six years, according to UC Berkeley’s Haas Energy Institute. Researchers link the surge to wildfire-related expenses and long-standing policy decisions that shifted more costs onto consumers, according to the NY Post.

“I represent a working-class district in Orange County, and constant utility rate increases mean incessant pressure for constituents to make ends meet,” Assemblymember Tri Ta told The Center Square.

He added, “I am very concerned about the cost of utilities in California. The main driver of our high costs are public policy decisions that were made long before I joined the Legislature but am tackling now.”

The Post writes that the increases come on top of California’s already high living costs, with families spending about $30,000 more than the national average on basic needs, according to the Transparency Foundation.

Analysts say utilities have been allowed to pass wildfire prevention and recovery expenses, infrastructure upgrades, and renewable energy investments directly to customers. Subsidies for rooftop solar have also shifted costs onto households without panels, according to UC Berkeley professor Severin Borenstein.

Elsewhere in the country, electricity prices generally tracked inflation from 2019 to 2025 or even declined. States such as Arizona, Minnesota, Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi, and North Carolina saw increases of just 1%, while rates fell in Nevada, Iowa, Alaska, Kansas, and South Carolina, the study found.