Millions of Americans receive their monthly utility bill and just assume it’s high because it’s been sweltering outside.
That’s only part of the story. Customers are also paying for everything from your utility company’s trade association fees, to lobbying efforts to increase your rates to maybe, even country club memberships, consumer advocates say. In the worst instances, according to legal allegations, you’ve also paid bribes to politicians, they say.
Such items may add up to a few extra dollars per month, which doesn’t seem like much on a $150 bill but that can become a fairly hefty tab, especially as the amount people are behind on their utility bills has soared 8.4% to $17.4 billion since December 2023. That’s according to The National Energy Assistance Directors Association (NAEDA), which guides states to help low-income households with their energy needs. NAEDA predicts shut offs to increase by 300,000 households to 3.5 million by the end of the year.
Utilities also often have a lock on hundreds of thousands of customers in each area they service, so the public has no choice, experts noted.
“If everyone pays multiple dollars a month more, over years, that’s hundreds of thousands of dollars” companies are collecting from Americans that have nothing to do with the cost of their power, said David Pomerantz, executive director of watchdog organization Energy and Policy Institute (EPI).
What are utilities making customers pay for?
Financial statements show…
