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U.S. electric utilities are increasing their investment in low-income energy efficiency programs, but the growing number of Americans considered income-challenged means a “gap” in funding exists, the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy said in a report published Thursday.
Most utilities “are still underinvesting in low-income programs relative to the corresponding proportion of income-qualified population in their service territories,” the report said. It noted a 14.4% gap, on average, between utility investment in programming for income-limited customers and the prevalence of low-income households, based on 2024 program reports and other sources.
The report assessed low-income investments by electric utilities making up about 60% of U.S. electricity sales, Anna Johnson, ACEEE senior policy manager and an author of the report, said in a webinar discussing the findings. Utility investments in low-income programs have risen to 13.4% of efficiency budgets overall, on average, up from about 9% in 2015, ACEEE said.
“But the bad news is that just as utilities are increasing the proportion of their budgets that are going to low-income households, we're also seeing that low-income households are increasing in the U.S. as a percentage of the population,” Johnson said. “Even as utility investments increase, we're seeing a persistent ... equity gap.”
