As utility bills climb, a growing number of governors are treating gas and electric affordability as equal parts political and economic emergency—stepping in with directives aimed at cushioning households from another year of punishing bills, all against a backdrop of recently won or upcoming elections.
One reason: The underlying price of power has moved sharply higher. The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects the national average residential electricity price at about 18 cents per kilowatt-hour in 2026—roughly 37% higher than in 2020.
And while those pressures have always hit low-income households hard, they’re starting to affect more working- and middle-class households as well.
“These increases may be an inconvenience for higher-income households, but for low- and middle-income families, they are devastating,” Mark Wolfe, executive director of the National Energy Assistance Directors’ Association (NEADA), said of the organization’s most recent Mid-Winter Heating Price Update.
They’re projecting national winter heating prices to increase by $84 compared to last year, with families who rely on electricity to heat their homes seeing the steepest increase of over 12%.
Their update describes a “perfect storm” pushing costs up: higher demand (including from data centers), inflation and financing costs, volatile natural gas prices, extreme weather, and overdue reinvestment in aging transmission and grid infrastructure—all of which ultimately flow through to homeowners and renters.
And while the pain is national, it’s especially acute in regions where winter demand and fuel constraints collide, like the Northeast. Now, governors from the region and nearby states are leading the charge to bring utility costs within reach of customers.
Four states are offering near-term relief efforts
Four states are moving to blunt electricity bill shocks with near-term credits in an acknowledgment that for many households, higher supply costs are landing like an emergency.
Shortly after she was sworn in on Jan. 20, 2026, New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill declared a utility-cost “state of emergency.”
“The current cost of electricity has reached the point of crisis for many residents and families, and requires bold action,” her order reads.
Between October 2024 and October 2025, the average electric bill in New Jersey surged nearly 15%, according to NEADA—one of the steepest jumps in the country.
In one of two executive orders, Sherrill directed regulators to apply credits to all utility customers’ bills this year, expected to show up on July statements.
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, who is up for reelection in November, is taking a more direct approach. Under her plan, Massachusetts customers would see a 25% discount on electricity and a 10% discount on gas in February and March—with the electric discount split (15/10) between the state and energy companies—at an estimated $180 million cost to the state.
But the relief may be temporary. The National Grid has proposed a near-10% hike starting in 2027, meaning customers could ultimately pay the difference in the coming year. That may be a hard burden to shoulder: Massachusetts ratepayers paid an average of $154 for electricity in October 2025, well above the national average of $133, according to NEADA.
Two other states are also offering near-term relief through checks or bill credits. Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont has proposed a one-time $200-per-person rebate, while Maryland Gov. Wes Moore is backing legislation that includes allocating $100 million in rebates to Maryland families. Both governors are also headed to the 2026 ballot.
The new tactic: ‘Freezes’ and pressure campaigns on utilities
In addition to softening the blow with credits, Sherrill and Healey are trying to slow the pipeline of new increases by putting pressure on utility companies.
Sherrill is pairing bill credits with what her administration frames as a “freeze” on rate hikes, using emergency authority to press regulators to pause or slow proceedings that could translate into higher bills while the state pursues longer-term cost relief.
However, it’s unclear exactly how much that could save customers in the long term, or if utility companies will be forced to comply.
In Massachusetts, Healey has coupled her winter bill reductions with a separate push to persuade utilities to waive interest charges for winter energy bills.
And in late January, utilities agreed.
“Customers need relief and we’re going to continue to push for it,” she shared via press release. “That includes our energy affordability legislation which creates more accountability for utilities, gets charges off bills, and drives down costs.”
The longer game: More supply, tougher rate reviews, and grid cost control
Another common tactic has been focusing on changing the mechanics that drive rates by focusing on how utilities justify increases, how regulators evaluate them, and how fast-growing electricity demand is allocated.
“Energy policy is about more than megawatts and transmission corridors—it is about whether Maryland families can afford to live in their homes,” Moore, the governor, said in late January in a press release. “That’s why our administration is stepping up to deliver real relief, focusing on driving down the cost of utility bills for Marylanders, and investing in local projects that make energy more reliable and affordable.”
His plan focuses on using part of the state’s Strategic Energy Investment Fund to modernize infrastructure and develop local generation options.
It’s an approach also being adopted by newly elected Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger.
Her campaign focused heavily on investing in efforts to increase local generation with low or no fuel cost, like offshore wind and solar energy projects. She also advocated for continued development of advanced energy technologies like geothermal, hydrogen, and small modular nuclear reactors—all causes that Sherrill is also pushing for.
New York’s plan: Make utilities prove every increase
In New York, Gov. Kathy Hochul—who is also up for reelection in 2026—is betting that the fastest path to lower bills is harder oversight of what utilities put into rate cases and stricter rules about what can be passed on to customers.
Her Ratepayer Protection Plan would bundle sweeping reforms into an “Affordable Utilities” omnibus bill, with a simple message: If utilities want to raise rates, they should have to justify every dollar—and strip anything that looks like padding.
Ken Lovett, senior communications adviser on energy and environment for Hochul, tells Realtor.com that the governor “has made energy affordability a central pillar of her policy agenda, which is why she is pursuing an all-of-the-above approach to keep the lights on and costs down.”
He added that Hochul “has made clear she believes utility rates in New York are too high and has directed the Department of Public Service to scrutinize every rate proposal to prioritize affordability and grid reliability—and not lining shareholder pockets.”
Her plan targets three pressure points in the rate-setting process:
- “Gold-plated” spending requests (requiring utilities to present a budget-constrained option below inflation)
- Hidden or inappropriate charges on bills (like certain corporate advertising, fines, and legal fees)
- Executive compensation (pushing disclosure and tying leadership pay to affordability outcomes)
The moves by these governors show how quickly utility bills have shifted from a pocketbook complaint to a governing problem. While the immediate credits and discounts may buy families breathing room, the bigger test will be whether regulators and governors can rein in what’s going into rates before higher bills become the new normal.