{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/blumenthal-and-hawley-introduce-bipartisan-bill-banning-bonuses-for-utility-executives-as-consumer-energy-costs-skyrocket", "Blumenthal & Hawley Introduce Bipartisan Bill Banning Bonuses for Utility Executives as Consumer Energy Costs Skyrocket", "2026-08-12", "2026", "2026-08", "Democrat", "Senate", "CT", "Richard Blumenthal", "B001277", "www.blumenthal.senate.gov", "blumenthal", "https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press", "scraper", "[WASHINGTON, D.C.] \u2013 U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Josh Hawley (R-MO) introduced the No Bonuses for Utility Executives Act, legislation to hold utility company executives accountable for excessive costs on consumers. The legislation prohibits utility executives from receiving bonuses in years when utility rates rise faster than inflation and caps bonuses when rates remain stable.\n\n\u201cThis legislation puts an end to unfair, unwarranted bonuses for utility executives who are lining their pockets while burdening consumers with increased costs,\u201d said Blumenthal. \u201cFor people in Connecticut, Eversource is seeking to raise utility rates by 18 percent when families are already struggling with rising costs\u2014and while the C-Suite earns millions. The No Bonuses for Utility Executives Act makes sure executives won\u2019t receive bonuses when utility rates rise faster than inflation, prohibiting companies from rewarding themselves while American families are stuck paying the price.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhile Missourians bear the burden of rising electricity costs, utility executives at these companies receive hefty bonuses. I\u2019m proud to introduce legislation to ban bonuses for corporate executives who benefit from skyrocketing prices,\u201d said Hawley.\n\nU.S. Representatives Josh Riley (D-NY) and Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ) released similar legislation in the House of Representatives in December.\n\n\u201cUpstate New Yorkers are getting crushed by high utility bills,\u201d said Riley. \u201cFolks are cutting back on everything from groceries to school clothes just to keep the lights on. Meanwhile, the utility monopolies are rewarding their CEOs with millions of dollars per year. When the people footing the bill get squeezed and the folks at the top walk off with massive bonuses, something\u2019s seriously broken \u2014 and I\u2019m fighting to fix it. Our bipartisan bill stops utility monopolies from rewarding the corporate executives who are ripping us off.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you are making electricity unaffordable for working families, you should NOT be getting a bonus. Period.\u201d said Van Drew. \u201cFamilies across South Jersey are getting hammered by higher electric bills while executives running these companies continue to reward themselves. That is completely backwards. This bill puts an end to that. If rates are skyrocketing, there should not be a big bonus waiting for you at the end of the year. It is time we put some real accountability on the people making these decisions.\u201d\n\nThe No Bonuses for Utility Executives Act would prohibit executives from earning a bonus when they raise rates faster than inflation. Additionally, if a covered utility illegally paid executive bonuses in violation of the bill, those bonuses would be forfeited and redistributed to customers as a rebate.\n\nThe full text of the bill can be found here.\n\n-30-", 1, "2026-08-13T06:17:16Z", "2026-08-13T06:18:13Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.blumenthal.senate.gov/newsroom/press/release/blumenthal-and-hawley-introduce-bipartisan-bill-banning-bonuses-for-utility-executives-as-consumer-energy-costs-skyrocket"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.3748039491474628, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}