There are many benefits to living in rural America. Rich greenlands, rolling farm hills, and a starry night sky become your neighborhood.

Small towns are filled with friends who become family, while shared traditions and recipes are passed down for generations.

I grew up in a rural community.

I live in the same Southwest Virginia community that my grandparents, great-grandparents, and great-great-grandparents called home.

While this timeless way of life is pleasant while sitting on your front porch, when in the office, or bustling through daily tasks, it becomes evident that rural communities are getting left behind.

While we enjoy a relaxed pace, the growing frustration from standing in just the right corner of your kitchen to make a phone call is increasingly tiresome.

In the early 20th century, electricity was introduced to farmers to increase productivity and output. Rural communities fought hard and long for accessible energy, jumping through hoops with government loans and lack of corporate competition due to undesirable locations.

By forming cooperatives, farmers were able to bring the luxuries of big cities, such as refrigerators and heat lamps, to the comfort of small towns.

Now, in the 21st century, gone are the days when even WIFI was a luxury. Today, wireless internet and HVAC systems have become basic utilities regardless of your zip code.

How could the same issue remain one hundred years later?

Rural communities are resilient and innovative, always working to make the best of what is available, yet cities more than five times the size of our downtowns sleep in the summer at 70 degrees.

Why must rural communities suffer from unaffordable electricity?

The fact is that the resources exist, but the government is not willing to pay for them. Instead, each year, they hike up rates and expect you to pay the gap.

They also expect you to pay your taxes, cook meals for your children, and contribute to the tanking economy.

Do they honestly expect us to control how a mountain range or a river affects the electricity bill?

I refuse to believe rural communities are destined to drag behind urban power and cheap innovation.

Basic quality of life should not be discriminated against by one’s location, especially not land regulated by the United States government.

On top of rising rates, Virginia’s Democratic-led General Assembly is pushing green energy. Solar farms and wind combines that cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes are set to be built with unrealistic timelines – it is estimated that 25% of our utility bill goes to green energy initiatives and policies, including the building out of infrastructure.

“Pay for our energy, but it also has to be green,” they say. Meanwhile, we can barely afford fossil fuels to begin with.

City expenses in our rural communities are not adding up. Something has to change.

You deserve to turn on your porch light when spring nights finally turn to summer.

You deserve a joy-filled holiday without having to decide between dinner and the heater.

The government’s job is to ensure businesses incorporate equal practices.

We must continue to fight for affordable solutions to maintain a basic quality of life, as rural communities cannot and should not be left behind.

Wren Williams serves in the Virginia House of Delegates, served as Trump’s legal counsel in the 2020 Wisconsin recount, and is currently a Permanent Organization Committee Member for the Republican National Convention. Wren has been a leader in the Virginia General Assembly, fighting for lower rates and more transparency.

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