Administration announces ‘Energy Affordability Agenda’

Gov. Maura Healey outlines the Healey-Driscoll Administration’s Energy Affordability Agenda in Lowell on March 10. (Photo courtesy Joshua Qualls/Governor’s Press Office)

At an event in Lowell on March 10, the Healey-Driscoll administration announced an “Energy Affordability Agenda” to identify and advance actions to lower energy bills for Massachusetts residents.

Gov. Maura Healey said the plan would save electric and gas customers $220 million in April and a total of $5.8 billion over five years.

Following recent actions by the Department of Public Utilities to lower gas bills by $95 million, she said her administration will deliver $125 million in savings to residential electricity customers served by Eversource, National Grid, and Unitil in April through a $50 credit on their bills.

Additionally, over the next year, she said the DPU will work to establish a first-in-the-nation moderate-income discount rate and expand tiered-income discount rates for lower-income customers. The DPU is also working to save an average heat pump customer up to $1,000 during the winter heating season.

The administration convened utilities and other stakeholders to launch a coordinated energy affordability outreach and engagement strategy, including in-person support to help sign people up for discount rates, bill management programs, and direct energy assistance. Residents looking to sign up for these programs can visit mass.gov/energysavings.

The governor said the efforts are intended to reduce costs and price volatility. She said she would file an energy affordability and independence bill in the coming weeks.

Lt. Gov. Kim Driscoll said the Energy Affordability Agenda will bring immediate relief to residents, “while also expanding programs that can make bills more manageable in the long run.”

Information about the plan’s potential savings is available online.

The administration said it is reviewing every charge to determine if there are alternative ways to finance new electric grid infrastructure and reduce the impact on customer bills. The administration is also taking steps to end programs that have achieved their goals and are no longer necessary, and remove from bills the associated costs, saving some customers on their monthly electricity bills.

The governor said the administration will also explore innovative rate designs to reduce volatility. It will also pursue fixed-price contracts for clean energy that can mitigate future price volatility for customers.