{"id":490061,"date":"2026-02-21T14:17:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-21T14:17:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/490061\/"},"modified":"2026-02-21T14:17:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-21T14:17:10","slug":"americas-energy-bills-are-soaring-the-pain-is-no-longer-just-for-the-poor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/490061\/","title":{"rendered":"America\u2019s energy bills are soaring. The pain is no longer just for the poor."},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s been a bitterly cold winter, and millions of Americans are struggling to pay for heat.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Harrison Pyros, a young professional in Washington, D.C., shares an apartment with four roommates and still feels squeezed.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of us work from home, so it\u2019s uncomfortable to be bundled up and at your computer,\u201d Pyros told MS NOW. \u201cWhen you see outside that it\u2019s bright and sunny, it\u2019s a little frustrating to be in an ice box just to keep the bill down.\u201d<\/p>\n

He is not alone. Heating costs are expected to rise 9.2 percent this winter, according to the National Energy Assistance Directors Association<\/a>. About one in six U.S. households is now behind on utility bills, owing a combined $23 billion to electric and gas utilities. Electricity prices are up more than 10 percent since January 2025<\/a>, and winter bills are projected to jump 11 percent \u2014 more than four times the rate of inflation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis used to just be a low-income problem, but it\u2019s hitting middle-class families hard now, so everyone\u2019s at high risk,\u201d said Mark Wolfe, the executive director of NEADA.\u00a0<\/p>\n

That reality is creating a broadening crisis with significant political implications heading into the 2026 midterm elections. In recent races in New Jersey, Virginia and Georgia, pocketbook frustrations fueled voter anger<\/a> \u2014 and energy costs, which touch every household in the country, could amplify that dynamic this fall.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is real hardship, not hypothetical,\u201d said Wolfe. \u201cEnergy assistance managers are seeing it every day this winter, and it\u2019ll hit people again in the summer. Folks are being forced to make hard choices \u2014 keeping the lights on or buying groceries; going into debt to provide for their families.\u201d<\/p>\n

Trenah Keita, a college student in Ohio who lives with her mother and three younger siblings, knows those choices intimately. Every winter, her family weighs whether they can afford both heat and extracurriculars, like taking part in sports, community events or after-school activities.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd unfortunately, utility bills take priority,\u201d Keita said.<\/p>\n

Wolfe told MS NOW that the solutions are complex and must come from both the federal and state level. At the federal level, he argues, the country needs to develop cheaper, more stable power sources \u2014 including the solar and wind energy that the current administration has targeted. At the state level, the most direct lever is public utility commissions, which approve or reject the rate increases that power companies propose. Those same commissions are also grappling with the surging electricity demands of data centers.<\/p>\n

\tRecommended<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\"Arielle\t\t\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tArielle Hixson<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n

\n\t\t\t\t\t\tArielle Hixson is an Emmy-nominated reporter for MS NOW.\t\t<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

\"MS<\/p>\n

\u00a9\u00a02026 Versant Media, LLC<\/p>\n

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