Utility bills in Kansas set to increase after 'Big Beautiful Bill' passes

TOPEKA (KSNT) — As President Trump's "Big-Beautiful Bill" heads to his desk for a final signature, we're continuing to track how it could impact Kansans.

One local expert tells us; utility bills will look a bit different in the coming years.

We spoke with a member of the Citizens Utility Rate Payer Board. He tells us that the bill will remove tax credits for renewable energy.

This means utility companies will opt to use more expensive options such as gas and coal plants, resulting in higher energy costs for everyday Kansans.

Joseph Astrab from CURB told us that conserving energy usage is the best way to keep bills down.

"Any sort of weatherization or energy efficiency upgrades that are within a person's budget to make, those would be things to consider," Astrab said. "As far as being able to prepare for such things it's just a matter of watching how your budget looks after these increases take effect and adjusting accordingly."

Additionally, the tax credit removal will impact energy projects in Kansas.

Projects such as the Big Sky Energy Center in Lawrence, as well as the West Gardner Farm in Johnson County, may not be able to go through with construction plans.

CEO of Good Energy Solutions Malcolm Proudfit says the projects may stop before they've even started.

"They haven't broken ground on either project yet, they're still in the development and early planning phase, but I don't necessarily see a roadmap for those projects to happen at this point."

Commercial and residential solar installation may soon become more expensive as well.

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