Source: Javier Zayas Photography / GettyBaltimore City leaders and community advocates rallied downtown Tuesday against a proposed Baltimore Gas and Electric rate increase that could add about $8 a month to customers’ electric bills. CBS Baltimore reports that Baltimore City Council President Zeke Cohen led the demonstration alongside consumer, environmental, labor and community groups opposing BGE’s proposed $156 million rate hike. BGE says the increase is needed to invest in infrastructure and improve reliability by reducing the frequency and length of power outages. Cohen pushed back on that argument, accusing BGE of putting shareholders ahead of Baltimore residents. “But there is no Baltimore comeback story if people can’t afford to pay their electricity bills.”