BHE intends to rape Colorado electricity subscribers

In 2018, Black Hills Energy sold some of its 700 oil and gas wells in New Mexico and the Powder River Basin in Wyoming to help finance a $70 million monolith headquarters in Rapid City. It was built there on the backs of subscribers without choices because out of state Republicans who write the tax law own South Dakota and because the state ended environmental oversight. BHE raised much of its construction cash on Colorado cannabis. Also in 2018 a majority of Pueblo, Colorado residents pushed the city to end its agreement with BHE and create a municipal electric utility. 

But in 2020 despite acknowledging BHE is a predator residents voted to remain enslaved to the South Dakota-based monopoly yet Pueblo still endures crappy service. Nevertheless, the utility laid off 44 employees across their eight-state service region, 24 of those positions in Rapid City. 

On October 26, 2026, the Pueblo City Council unanimously passed a resolution opposing two Black Hills Energy proposals that could increase residential electric bills by more than 22% through 2030. The city passed the resolution just one day before an October 27 deadline to submit testimonial answers to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission. 

A proposed 14.7% increase raising average monthly bills from $124.18 to $142.48. A temporary two-year credit attempts to mask this as an 8.8% increase, but it relies on previously collected ratepayer funds and expires later. An additional 7.9% average monthly bill increase from 2026 to 2030, driven by resource plans and a rising Renewable Energy Standard Adjustment surcharge. Together, these proposals push total residential increases past 22% and will also raise operational costs for municipal facilities. BHE defends the increases as necessary for grid resilience and weather outage mitigation. 

BHE and NorthWestern Energy are currently in the final throes of a $15.4 billion all-stock merger to form a combined holding company called Bright Horizon Energy Corporation.

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