An August 2022 report from the National Energy Assistance Directors Association, which represents the state officials who dole out federal utility assistance dollars, found that American households held $16.1 billion in utility debt and that one in six families was behind on at least one utility bill.

That total was double what it was in 2019, a spike that the report blamed on rising energy prices and pandemic-driven job losses.

Aid is available. Pennsylvania distributes hundreds of millions of dollars a year through the federally funded LIHEAP program to low-income households struggling with energy bills.

Utility companies also offer aid programs and spent $567 million on such programs in 2022, according to the commission. Those programs vary from utility to utility, Stephen DeFrank, chair of the state Public Utility Commission, told Spotlight PA, and can include cash assistance, temporary bill reduction, or weatherization to improve energy efficiency.

Overall, Pennsylvania utilities offer the second-highest total aid in the nation, according to DeFrank.

In Pennsylvania, gas and electric utilities billed residential customers for $11.2 billion in services in 2022 and wrote off $187 million due to nonpayment, according to Public Utility Commission data.

Those unpaid bills can become an “uncollectible expense” that utilities can cite when they petition the commission for a rate increase, said Fitzpatrick, meaning unpaid bills could be used by the companies to justify higher rates on all consumers.

- Spotlight PA