Cori Bush and Jamaal Bowman Call for a Public Power System to Save Money and the Environment

Cori Bush and Jamaal Bowman Call for a Public Power System to Save Money and the Environment

Democratic Reps. Cori Bush from Missouri and Jamaal Bowman from New York introduced a resolution to Congress on Thursday, calling for a publically governed power system that would be more environmentally friendly and more accessible to low-wealth communities.

Currently, the large majority of the United States is powered by privately-owned energy companies that rely mostly on fossil fuels to power their networks. Democrats Bush and Bowman urged Congress to move away from this "problematic structure of investor-owned utilities" because it prioritizes shareholder profits over the environment and all communities' access to electricity, which they say should be thought of as a basic "human right."

"Our country must transform its power system to be just, equitable, anti-racist, and climate- and disaster-resilient," said Congresswoman Cori Bush in a press release. "For too many families in St. Louis and across the country, the high cost of energy means having to choose between keeping the heat on in the winter or buying groceries.