04/26/2026
We’ve crossed a line with this project, and I don’t think there’s really any going back. Not that we’d want to. This isn’t just a handful of stories anymore. We are seeing your stories start to show the full shape of what our people in this state are dealing with every single day and it’s gut-wrenching.
Right now, the WV Utility Impact Project has responses from 33 counties across West Virginia. That’s more than half the state. In the first month of launching. That’s a testament to how fired up and DONE we all are.
We aren’t getting data isolated to one region, or one type of community or political lane. We’re hearing from families, seniors, working folks, parents, people on fixed incomes, people with disabilities, Republicans, Democrats, Indepedents, politically active and those who’ve never voted a day in their lives, all just people trying to hold it together.
All of us, past capacity and spread across mountains, valleys, towns, and cities are all desperately saying some version of the same thing.
But at the same time, there are still 22 counties we haven’t heard from yet. Barbour, Braxton, Calhoun, Clay, Doddridge, Gilmer, Grant, Hampshire, Hancock, Jefferson, Lincoln, McDowell, Mineral, Monroe, Morgan, Pendleton, Pleasants, Pocahontas, Ritchie, Roane, Summers, and Wirt. If that’s you, WE NEED YOUR INPUT!
And I want to explain why we are hellbent on wanting all 55. We don’t need a perfect map for the sake of appearances, but because every missing county is a set of people whose reality isn’t fully accounted for yet. Your reality matters to us, and should be included in our conversations with the people in power.
The more complete this portrait of Appalachia becomes, the harder it is for anyone—utilities, regulators, lawmakers—to brush this off as isolated complaints or exaggeration. They know what they’re doing to us, but they apparently need us alert them that we see through their weasel word notices and we're calling them like we see them. We know they are snakes in the grass.
If you’re in one of those counties, we need you in this. Your story matters just as much as anyone else’s.
Now let’s talk about what’s actually been submitted. On average, people are paying about $222 a month just for electricity. Gas or heating is averaging around $166. Water is about $111. Sewer is sitting around $94. If you have all 4 utilities and your water/sewage isn’t combined, your average monthly payment is around $593 just on utilities. And that’s lowballing what most of the submissions’ bills showed.
That’s over half a grand every month just to keep your house functioning at the most basic level. Lights on. Heat or air. Water running. Waste going somewhere. That’s before you even think about groceries, gas in your car, rent or a mortgage, medications, kids, emergencies, anything.
That’s the baseline cost of existing in your own home right now. And, then, out of around 175 responses so far, 80 people have received shutoff notices. At least half of people have already had a utility disconnected at least once. Some, more than that.
That’s not a future problem. That’s not something that might happen if things get worse. Our decline is already here with no end in sight. We want the people in power to see not just numbers, but patterns. Patterns they are perpetuating, and even glorifying.
THIS IS VIOLENCE.
We need to revamp the way we view our world to understand violence isn’t just fists. It can be systemic in the way it enslaves us to circumstances and oppression rather than frees us to enjoy our Creator-given inalienable rights to life, liberty, and, of course, happiness.
We are not doing this alone. Since this project started, we’ve connected with people and organizations across the state who have been doing this work, fighting these fights, and building pushback in ways no single one of us could do on our own. They're unsung heroes in our communities. Please follow them.
Some of the connections we’ve made include West Virginians For Energy Freedom, who are actively working on their own efforts to elevate these stories (so if you indicated you’re willing to share more, you may hear from them), Moms Clean Air Force WV, From Below: Rising Together for Coalfield Justice, Appalachian Citizens' Law Center, West Virginia Citizen Action Group, and Allegheny Action alongside Jake Frye.
And that’s just scratching the surface. Between all of us, there are dozens of coalition partners, advocates, and community members working to make sure this doesn’t get buried. If you want to join our coalitions, don't wait. Now is the time.
On the accountability side, FOIA requests have been sent to most major West Virginia offices and agencies that may have a hand in utility data, communications around data centers, rate increases, and everything tied to how these decisions are being made. We’ve already heard back from the West Virginia Public Service Commission, Office of Governor Patrick Morrisey, and the West Virginia Office of Energy.
And I want to be transparent about what those initial responses looked like. We brought them to our table at the Where We Go From Here WV End of the World Party. Shout out to those folks for putting on a great event and inviting a variety of candidates.
Most of the agencies and offices are saying either they “don’t have the data” or that the request is “too broad.” Some are also indicating they don’t want to provide information before July 1.
So here’s what happens next.
We are going to break those requests down. Again and again and again. Smaller pieces. More targeted asks. Twenty to thirty follow-ups if that’s what it takes.
Is it long? Yes.
Is it tedious? Also yes.
Is it going to stop us? Sure, Jan.
We will keep pushing until we get answers.
On the federal side, I also connected with the Appalachian Citizens' Law Center to send a letter to Maddi Blalock, who works with the Environmental and Public Works Committee. Through the WECR caucus, there is active federal advocacy happening right now around drinking water affordability.
Right now, Lisa Blunt Rochester and Alex Padilla—both on that committee—are working to establish a permanent water affordability program through the EPA and get it included in an upcoming bill. The challenge is that it doesn’t yet have strong Republican support.
That’s where we come in. Senator Shelley Moore Capito chairs that committee. And as West Virginians, our voices matter in that conversation. And, to her, that should matter the most.
So we are organizing outreach to her office in support of this. If you want to help get letters out, reach out to our page. If you want your name added to a collective letter from West Virginians, comment below and say “Add me to the letter.”
I will make sure you’re included. This is what this work looks like. It’s data, yes. But it’s also pressure. It’s coordination. It’s showing up in every space where decisions are being made and refusing to let this be ignored. It’s seeing where some of our neighbors are pouring their energy and amplifying those voices. WE. ARE. STRONGER. TOGETHER.
If you haven’t filled out the survey yet, please do. If you have, share it. If your county isn’t represented yet, help us fix that. We cannot stop. Our lives are on the line. All of them.
https://form.jotform.com/260745171610047
