We scored all ~3,000 American utilities for shutoff protections. The results? Every single one gets an F.
Well, the headline might be a little misleading, but the ghost of shutoffs looms large in America. Truth bomb–we didn’t actually score a single utility. But to the best of our knowledge, no energy utility large or small, municipal, cooperative or investor-owned, has permanently and categorically banned shutoffs. In essence, each utility has said it reserves the right to disconnect a household from the human right to energy. Even your neighborly municipal utilities continue to find ways to execute shutoffs, often more aggressively than investor-owned monopolies.
If a utility has shutoff protections for December but not September, August but not April, if you are 65 but not if you’re 64 or just a wee 4 years old, if you are hospitalized but not merely sick or disabled or pregnant, if you won the 1 in 20 odds of getting into a bill assistance program but not if your cheap-ass landlord won’t ever fix the ancient broken furnace and you’re running up a crazy bill with space heaters that still can’t heat the house—these so called partial protections all add up to a farce.
Why has no utility found a solution to shutoffs, particularly after the temporary moratoriums that protected people during the pandemic? Why are they still pumping money into a grotesque machinery of eligibility certification, collections, late fees, reconnection fees, final notices, and the ultimate punishment of deprivation rather than actually trying to solve the problem?
There is no failure-proof way to determine whether a shutoff is safe. Millions of Americans live in the constant fear of a looming shutoff, every step of their lives dictated by efforts to stave off a shutoff. 122 million times in 2024 Americans were threatened with a final notice, 15 million times they endured a dehumanizing shutoff. People in power allowed the denial of their human rights while utilities went right along collecting checks and sending bonuses to execs and investors.
People have died because we do not have a universal guarantee to uninterrupted utilities, and will continue to as long as utilities defend their right to deprive others of the human right to energy. 100% of shutoffs are inhumane and there is always a better alternative for both the family at risk, other ratepayers, and the well-being of our communities. That’s the whole enchilada.
We believe change is possible. There will be successful campaigns to end shutoffs, first in communities where both grassroots organizing and the leadership of public officials are strong, then radiating out to more and more communities until we reach a tipping point. This has been the path for all kinds of social change that involved redefining human rights and inscribing them as permanent protections.
Here’s what you can do!
- If you’re a community activist or advocate and want to work with us to start a local or state-wide campaign to end shutoffs, reach out at:
endshutoffs@energyequityproject.org - If you hold an elected or appointed position with the authority to advance policies and regulations that end shutoffs, schedule a briefing with us at:
endshutoffs@energyequityproject.org - If you’re a philanthropist, a journalist, an artist, or a magician who can elevate the movement to end shutoffs, drop us a line at:
endshutoffs@energyequityproject.org - If you work at a utility and want to collaborate with us to develop a credible path to eliminating shutoffs, hit us up on the down low at:
endshutoffs@energyequityproject.org - If you’re just a dreamer whose conscience is ringing and holding out hope for a just world, come in, come in:
(wait for it….)
endshutoffs@energyequityproject.org
Busting the ghosts of every last slimy shutoff is goblins of fun! Join the team!