Issue Brief: America Needs a Paradigm Shift in
How the Nation Responds to Extreme Heat
December 2024
In this new Issue Brief, written with funding by the ClimateWorks Foundation, we discuss the need for an expanded and integrated approach to increase the energy efficiency of the low-income housing stock, which in turn will help protect the nation’s low-income families from dangerous and ever-increasing extreme heat events. This project was based on an op-ed that we wrote in June for CNN.
Our recommendations focus on helping states develop comprehensive programs using existing federal, state and utility funding streams; new state public benefit initiatives; smart technology; and existing funds from the Inflation Reduction Act to aid low-income families as they struggle to pay their utility bills.
Protecting Access to Essential Utility Service During Extreme Heat and Climate Change
July 2024
The National Consumer Law Center, in collaboration with CEPC and funding from the ClimateWorks Foundation, authored a report outlining specific actions that policymakers and regulators must take to address the unaffordability of, and need for continued access to, essential utility service during extreme weather events and year-round. Financially struggling utility customers are driven to restrict their energy use and limit use of air conditioning during extreme heat, out of fear of unaffordability utility bills, which can have deadly consequences. The report identifies several recommendations for policymakers.
Beating the Heat: Recommendations and Considerations for States to Support Cost-Effective Residential Cooling
July 2024
The National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO), supported by CEPC and the ClimateWorks Foundation, published a report demonstrating how state and territory energy offices are well-positioned to lead cross-agency collaboration that helps deploy energy-efficient heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning solutions to low-income households and communities in need. The report is focused on technology solutions that enable households to cool affordably and comfortably as extreme heat events become more prevalent, and includes a detailed appendix with examples from state energy offices across the country that offer comprehensive program portfolios to tackle extreme heat and deploy advanced household cooling technologies.
Crisis in Energy Affordability:
Summer Shutoff Protections and Bill Support Fail to Adapt to a Warming World
July 2024
State shut-off rules to help families stay connected to cooling during periods of extreme temperatures have not kept pace with the realities of climate change. Many were written decades ago when in many parts of the country dangerous temperatures were limited to short-term heat waves and the demand for electricity to run cooling systems was much lower because fewer families had access to air-conditioning.
2024 Summer Energy Outlook
June 2024
Home energy is becoming increasingly unaffordable for low-income families. The financial burden to families of keeping cool this summer will increase by 7.9% across the nation to an average of $719 from June through September, up from $661 during the same period last year, according to projections from the National Energy Assistance Directors Association (NEADA) and the Center for Energy Poverty, and Climate (CEPC).
State & Territory Energy Office Webinar Series
June 2024
The Center for Energy Poverty and Climate (CEPC), the ClimateWorks Foundation, and the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO) are hosting a series of webinars during June and July 2024 to discuss several topics related to state energy plans, cooling technology, and low-income populations. Each session will include presentations by expert speakers that lay out the problem and potential solutions, followed by a moderated discussion between participants and speakers.
Public Utility Commissions Webinar Series
February 2024
The Center for Energy Poverty and Climate (CEPC) and the ClimateWorks Foundation hosted a series of webinars during February and March 2024 to underscore the need for action from policy makers and public utility regulators given the rise of extreme heat events associated with climate change. discuss several topics related to state energy plans, cooling technology, and low-income populations. Each session included presentations by expert speakers that explained the problem and potential solutions, followed by a moderated discussion between participants and speakers.
Summer Shutoff Protections and Bill Support Fail to Adapt to a Warming World
June 2023
Low income families struggle to pay their home energy bills. The rapid increase in the cost of basic goods – food, shelter and energy – have placed millions of low income families in the precarious position of having to choose between paying their home energy bill and food, rent and medicine. While the overall rate of inflation is finally starting to come down, the impact of rapidly rising prices in the last year have taken their toll.
Helping Low-Income Families Adapt to Rising Temperatures: The Role of Weatherization
May 2023
Extreme heat events have become more common in the summer months and are occurring even in regions that typically do not experience hot temperatures. Low-income households are particularly vulnerable to extreme heat events because many do not have access to affordable energy efficient cooling systems.