Utility Rights & Affordability Archives

Electric Service Discount and Arrearage Management Program Design Template

April 14, 2020

As the health, safety, and economic impacts of the Covid-19 crisis become increasingly clear, the need to universally adopt programs and policies that enhance the affordability of necessary utility service is also highlighted. To win approval of programs and policies to enhance secure access to home energy services, advocates must “make the case” for program…

COVID-Driven Utility Arrearages: Implications for Policy in Massachusetts and the Nation

February 23, 2021

The COVID-19 crisis placed millions of Americans in financial peril, hitting households of color particularly hard. In response, moratoriums on utility shutoffs were instituted in many states across the country to protect customers from the immediate danger of termination. However, some states’ moratoriums have already expired, or, were never instituted in the first place, meaning…

Protecting Seriously Ill Consumers from Utility Disconnections: What States Can Do to Save Lives Now

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Each year, millions of utility customers have their service terminated for non-payment. Many of those are low-income households in which someone is seriously ill. In extreme cases, termination of service to those households has led to death. Much more frequently, loss of electric or gas service makes existing illnesses or conditions worse. Utility…

PowerPoint: Disparate Energy Insecurity Impacts

April 14, 2020

The Need For Racial Justice in Utility Billing, Credit and Collections 100% Network Webinar on Energy Security in the Wake of the Coronavirus

Testimony Before the MA Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities & Energy Regarding Competitive Energy Suppliers

January 14, 2020

NCLC has been actively involved in advocacy for consumers who have been financially harmed by alternative (or competitive) energy supply companies. We have released a report and an issue brief which both described the common abusive sales practices and inflated prices which have harmed so many Massachusetts consumers, with a particular emphasis on the unfair…

Support Testimony - MA S. 2150/H. 3352, An Act Relative to Electric Ratepayer Protections

July 28, 2021

NCLC has been actively involved in advocacy for consumers who have been financially harmed by alternative (or competitive) energy supply companies. We have released a report and an issue brief which both describe the common abusive sales practices and inflated prices which have harmed so many Massachusetts consumers, with a particular emphasis on the unfair…

Comments to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission re: the Affected Communities Discussed at the April 16th Office of Public Participation Workshop

April 23, 2021

Competing to Overcharge Consumers: The Competitive Electric Supplier Market in Massachusetts

April 2, 2018

In 1997, Massachusetts passed the Electric Restructuring Act and deregulated its electric utility companies. Prior to that change in the law, electric utilities (local distribution companies or LDCs) owned the power plants that generate electricity and the local utility poles and lines seen on virtually every street that connect homes and businesses to the electricity…

A New Customer Bill of Rights: Affordable Utility Services

CO-AUTHORED WITH DERON LOVAAS AND LARRY LEVINE (NRDC) Utility services–electricity, heat, water, sanitation, telecommunications, and internet access–are essential to health, safety, and daily life. The vital need for uninterrupted utility service was evident before the coronavirus pandemic, but the COVID-19 public health emergency has reinforced the essential nature of utility service and the threats of…

Advocacy to Manage Low-Income Utility Debt in the Age of COVID-19

May 26, 2020

Powerpoint presented during a webinar series on the impact of COVID-19 on utility ratemaking.

What States Can Do to Help Consumers: Energy Insecurity

June 16, 2025

Over a quarter of U.S. households face challenges in paying energy bills or keeping their homes heated or cooled, including 50% of households with less than $20,000 in annual income.

PowerPoint: Helping Those Harmed Financially from COVID-19

April 23, 2020

A webinar presented to over 890 registrants with a focus on: Protecting stimulus payments; Dealing with car repossessions, including electronic repossessions; Navigating available mortgage relief and advocating for additional relief; Ensuring consistent utility and telecommunication access, and; Dealing with debt collection efforts.

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