The Cost of Clean: PUC’s Plan Sets Stage for Higher Energy Prices

~Anne Boswell

On a cold Colorado day you might be thinking more about how your home is heated. However, the Public Utilities Commission is making bold moves to change the way you heat your home and it could cost you more.

The PUC's Clean Heat Plan has been in the works for a few years now but with a deadline to eliminate up to 41-percent of the state's natural gas industry drawing closer, some lawmakers are speaking out on it.

According to a news release from Colorado House Republicans, Representative Jarvis Caldwell and Representative Ty Winter feel that ruling could be costly for families and small businesses to be forced to replace heating systems and appliances.

Colorado’s PUC wants to step away from natural gas to electricity and under the mandate would need to reduce emissions. While there could be rebates offered to the end consumer to make the switch, Representative Ty Winter feels it's not good for rural Colorado and is overreach. He gave the following quote in a news release from House Republicans on the topic:

“Colorado has already watched thousands of good paying jobs disappear and seen severance tax revenue drained from the schools, roads, and rural hospitals that depend on it. Now the state is moving to dictate how families in rural Colorado heat their homes. This is government overreach at its worst, and rural Colorado pays the price every single time,” Winter said.

In the same release, Representative Caldwell stated their priority is to make sure energy is reliable and affordable.

Representative Winter added they will keep fighting to rural families to have a choice in how they heat their homes. He said those families cannot afford more costly mandates.

The costs to the end consumer are expected to rise as less natural gas is produced, the price would go up as less would be available.

The PUC's plan in place is to reduce usage of natural gas by 41 percent by the year 2035.

(related links to this story)

https://www.blackhillsenergy.com/clean-heat#:~:text=Plan%20Option%202%20%E2%80%94%20Clean%20Heat,against%20progress%20toward%20achieving%20reductions.

https://i2i.org/puc-establishes-new-clean-heat-targets-designed-to-crack-down-on-natural-gas/#:~:text=In%202024%2C%20residential%20electricity%20customers,to%20Colorado%20households%20last%20year.

https://coloradosun.com/2025/12/02/colorado-natural-gas-emissions-caps-xcel/

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