Trump Tax Plan Could Raise Energy Bills by 18%, Governor Warns

GREENSBORO, N.C. — If President Donald Trump’s proposed “One Big Beautiful Bill” is signed into law, North Carolina’s Governor Josh Stein says your power bill could surge. 

“In NC, electricity rates will increase by 18% if this terrible bill in DC is enacted!” Stein posted on social media.

His office says that number comes from clean energy analyst Michael Thomas, who runs a national tracking company called Clean View. He told us in an interview the bill could spike electricity costs across the country.

“There’s no doubt this bill is going to increase electricity prices all over the country,” Thomas said. “In states like North Carolina, folks can expect their bills to go up about 18%.”

Thomas and other clean industry experts say it all comes down to two provisions in the bill: sections 45Y and 48E. They eliminate tax credits for companies building new green energy projects.

“It effectively increases the cost of building new energy projects in this country,” Thomas said. “And those costs will be passed on to consumers.”

Dan O’Brien with the independent Energy Innovation agrees. He says their modeling — which is publicly available — shows the average North Carolina household would see their power bills rise up to about $700 more per year.  A 2 Wants To Know analysis finds that is a 28% increase — even more than Stein’s 18% warning.

“We and other groups have found significant increases in energy prices from this bill,” O’Brien said.

Supporters of the tax bill argue those clean energy tax credits are being cut so you can keep more of your money in other ways.

Under the plan’s updated standard deductions, people earning the average salary in North Carolina would owe $253 less if they file as single, and $506 less for married couples.

According to the Tax Foundation the bill also includes temporary tax breaks like:

• A $6,000 additional deduction for some seniors

• A $25,000 deduction for servers on their tips

• A $12,500 deduction on overtime pay for hourly workers

We reached out to Duke Energy, the main electricity provider for our area to ask how the bill could impact local rates, but so far we haven’t heard back.