PRIA Logo™
119-hr-10466119th CongressWALLET

End Energy Hardship Act

Sponsored By: Representative Tonko, Paul [D-NY-20]

Introduced

Summary

End household energy arrears and make bills income-based. This bill would create a two‑phase Utility Affordability Program to eliminate unpaid electric and gas balances and build lasting income‑based bill caps through Qualified Percentage of Income Payment Programs or equivalents.

Show full summary
  • Families and low‑income households: Automatic enrollment for households at or below the greater of 150% of the Federal poverty level or 60% of a State's median income. Monthly charges would be capped at 6% of gross household income with subcaps of 3% for electric and 3% for heating, and enrolled customers are protected from late fees, disconnections, and certain collections when they make timely payments.
  • Utilities, States, and territories: Competitive grants would fund eligible distribution utilities to erase arrears and modernize billing systems. The bill provides $25 billion for Phases I and II and up to $5 billion more across FY2027–2031 for technical assistance, program support, data, and reporting.
  • Administration and oversight: Recipients face a 10% cap on administrative costs and for‑profit recipients must match 10% from owner sources. The Energy Information Administration would collect arrears and disconnection data with annual public reporting and a six‑year evaluation to guide improvements.

*This bill would authorize about $30 billion in federal funding, increasing federal spending unless offsets are provided.*

Personalized for You

How does this bill affect your finances?

Personalize government policy and PRIA will tell you what this bill means for your household, plus every other piece of legislation we track. PRIA reads each provision against your financial profile to show you exactly what matters to your wallet.

Free to download

Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

5 provisions identified: 5 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.

New energy affordability program funding

If enacted, the Energy Department would run a Utility Affordability Program to help make electric and gas service more affordable. The bill would authorize $25 billion total for the program, available until expended. It would also authorize $1 billion per year for fiscal years 2027 through 2031 for technical help, payment program support, and data work. These are authorizations and would still need appropriation action.

Fast utility bill arrears relief

If enacted, the Department would give Phase I grants to utilities within 12 months to eliminate residential past‑due electric and natural gas balances. Awards could not exceed a utility's total residential arrears and must be used only to wipe out those arrears. Recipients would have a 10% administrative cost limit, must stop late fees, collections, and disconnections for amounts the funding will cover, and may not recover those amounts from other ratepayers.

Income-based energy payment limits

If enacted, utilities that get Phase I funds would have to start a long‑running income‑based payment program within 12 months and run it at least 60 months. The program would enroll households at or below the greater of 150% of the Federal poverty level or 60% of the State median income, and allow automatic enrollment from other identified low‑income programs. Monthly charges would be capped at 6% of gross household income overall. For natural gas heated homes, the caps could be 3% for electric and 3% for heating. Enrolled customers who pay on time could not be disconnected, and arrears forgiveness would be up to one‑twelfth of the arrears after each full, timely monthly payment. The Secretary would offer technical help and could pay some implementation costs; for‑profit utilities getting that help would need a 10% owner match.

Utility arrears and enrollment reporting

If enacted, the Energy Information Administration would collect yearly data from utilities on arrears and enrollments, starting within 12 months. Data would include arrears totals and counts of customers with balances older than 90, 120, and 180 days, instances of disconnection for unpaid bills, and counts of customers enrolled in income‑based programs. The EIA would publish an annual report with State and ZIP Code breakdowns.

Equal utility credits for customers

If enacted, Phase II funding (not earlier than 24 months after enactment) would be given only to utilities that received Phase I funds. Phase II amounts would be proportional to each utility's residential customer count. Each utility would have to use its Phase II money to give the same dollar credit to every residential customer it serves. The per‑customer credit equals the utility's Phase II allocation divided by its number of residential customers.

Sponsors & CoSponsors

Sponsor

Tonko, Paul [D-NY-20]

NY • D

Cosponsors

There are no cosponsors for this bill.

Roll Call Votes

No roll call votes available for this bill.

View on Congress.gov
Back to Legislation