Report examines public records, explains limits of available evidence, and provides regional snapshots for Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Columbus
BOULDER, Colo. – 1F Cash Advance today published a research report examining how electricity-market changes may affect household budgets in Ohio. The report relies on public data from PJM Interconnection, the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio, the Ohio Housing Finance Agency, and utility tariff records.
Findings and context
The review found that PJM’s capacity-market clearing price increased from $28.92 per megawatt-day for the 2024–2025 delivery year to $269.92 for 2025–2026. It later reached $329.17 for 2026–2027. Capacity charges are only one part of an electricity bill, so these figures cannot be translated directly into a specific residential rate increase.
PJM identifies data-center development, electrification, economic activity, and other factors in its regional load forecasts. The report does not claim that any single category caused a particular change in an Ohio household’s bill.
To illustrate household exposure without predicting future rates, the report includes usage-based calculations. For a household consuming 1,000 kilowatt-hours in a month, each one-cent change in the per-kilowatt-hour rate changes the monthly energy charge by $10 before taxes and fixed charges. The corresponding change is $5 at 500 kilowatt-hours and $15 at 1,500 kilowatt-hours.
Regional sections cover:
– Cincinnati: Public tariff and residential-rate information associated with the area’s regulated utility service.
– Cleveland: Public tariff records and rate components applicable within the region.
– Columbus: Public residential-rate records, including generation and delivery components that may change on different schedules.
The report advises readers to compare its regional examples with the utility name, service territory, rate plan, and billing period printed on their own statements.
Methodology and limitations
Researchers reviewed records published from January 1, 2024, through June 30, 2026. Sources were checked through July 15, 2026. The review included:
– PJM capacity-auction results and load-forecast materials;
– U.S. Energy Information Administration retail electricity data;
– Public Utilities Commission of Ohio rate and consumer-information records;
– Filed utility tariffs and standard-service information;
– Housing-cost context from the Ohio Housing Finance Agency; and
– State energy-assistance materials.
The work is a desk review of public records. It does not use customer account information, credit files, interviews, or a household survey. It also does not estimate a causal relationship between data-center activity and an individual bill.
Official records are distinguished from secondary reporting. The bibliography includes relevant coverage from the Ohio Capital Journal but does not treat news coverage as a substitute for agency data.
Primary public sources include:
– PJM capacity market: https://www.pjm.com/markets-and-operations/rpm
– PJM load forecasting: https://www.pjm.com/planning/resource-adequacy-planning/load-forecast-dev-process
– U.S. Energy Information Administration electricity data: https://www.eia.gov/electricity/data/
– Public Utilities Commission of Ohio: https://puco.ohio.gov/
– Ohio energy-choice information: https://energychoice.ohio.gov/
– Ohio Housing Finance Agency research: https://ohiohome.org/research/
Assistance and legal information
The report lists noncredit options residents can review, including utility payment arrangements and state-administered home-energy assistance. Program rules, availability, and qualification standards are determined by the administering agencies.
The publication does not recommend borrowing to pay an electricity bill and contains no loan application or credit offer. According to Ohio’s Short-Term Loan Act, state law establishes requirements for covered short-term lenders and credit transactions. The report links to the codified text without offering a legal interpretation:
https://codes.ohio.gov/ohio-revised-code/chapter-1321
About 1F Cash Advance
1F Cash Advance is a Boulder, Colorado-based marketing and referral service that publishes consumer-finance educational material. It is not a lender, does not make credit decisions, and does not set provider terms. This release is limited to the cited electricity-cost research and does not solicit a credit application.
Media contact
Media Relations
1F Cash Advance
info@1firstcashadvance.org