Electricity disconnections in the US surged 28% in July 2026 compared with the same month two years earlier, as record heat and rising energy costs hit households across the country.
In July, the hottest month ever recorded in the US, 173,598 households were shut off from their electric supply by utilities across 10 states, figures provided to the Guardian show. The rate of disconnections rose sharply from July 2024, pointing to a worsening problem even as dangerous heat baked communities.
Rising bills and dangerous heat
Even as three separate heat dome events scorched the US in July, many people rationed their use of air conditioning and other appliances, or lost use of them entirely by being cut off for non-payment.
Mark Wolfe, executive director of the National Energy Assistance Directors Association (NEADA), said the organization had been hearing from many people angry and desperate because their bills had doubled. “People now are cutting back on food or medicine or resorting to payday lenders because you need to get the power back on. The protections in place aren’t working, it’s just cruel,” he said.
Not all states require utilities to report shut-off figures, but NEADA compiled data from 10 states, including New York, Georgia, California and Illinois. The true national level is far higher – the federal government reported 13.4m household shut-offs in 2024, with rates particularly high in southern states including Texas, Florida, Oklahoma and Louisiana.
Households struggle to cope
About one in six US households are now behind on their energy bills, putting them at potential risk of being cut off, NEADA estimates. The risk varies by state – 23 states and Washington DC have rules preventing disconnections when heat rises above a certain threshold, while the remaining 27 states allow shut-offs regardless of weather.
Carol Norman, a 70-year-old from Tom Bean, Texas, said her utility bills soared to about $600 a month, mostly due to air conditioning. She now uses bursts of air conditioning in one room despite barely venturing outside over summer because of the heat. “A couple of times I walked to the grocery store before it got too hot but once it gets to 100F [37C] you can’t go out,” she said.
Nina Johnson, from Austin, Texas, said electric bills of more than $200 take up a large portion of her monthly income of $550, meaning she has cut out pleasures such as ice-cream and lunch out with friends. “I’m eating a lot of peanut butter sandwiches,” she said.
Policy and political responses
Electricity bills have been climbing in the US since 2021, spurred by the power demands of artificial intelligence datacenters and the cost of utilities’ grid upgrades. The severe global energy disruption caused by the US and Israeli attack on Iran earlier this year has accelerated this trend, raising power bills and adding $100bn in extra gasoline costs for Americans’ cars and trucks.
The Trump administration has sought to completely axe the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (Liheap), which gives states money to assist people struggling with power bills. While Congress has not agreed to the scheme’s demise, the administration has been accused of freezing obligated funds.
Kate Gallego, mayor of Phoenix, which has just had its second hottest summer on record, said getting rid of low-income energy aid was a step in the wrong direction. “Americans are very concerned about affordability and getting rid of low-income energy aid is a step in the wrong direction, especially since the administration has made decisions that have increased many people’s costs around energy,” she said.
The White House insists it is focused on cutting energy costs. “Lowering electricity prices is a top priority for President Trump, and he is aggressively unleashing reliable energy sources like coal and natural gas to reverse the catastrophic damage that Joe Biden and the Democrats did to our power grid,” said Taylor Rogers, a White House spokesperson.
Looking ahead to winter
Some cities and states have sought to provide financial assistance to households caught in the crunch of extreme weather and rising bills. Shade from extra trees, new water features in parks and playgrounds, cooling centers and early warning systems have also become priorities for municipalities as heatwaves have got fiercer.
With a record hot summer now passed, NEADA’s attention is turning to how elevated costs of oil and gas will affect Americans heating their homes in the colder months. On Monday, the organization estimated that homes heated by oil, most common in the US north-east, will face bills 50% higher than last year.
“Winter is just around the bend, and we are very concerned about what this means for low-income families that use heating oil,” said Wolfe, who has requested that Congress provide a further $3bn for Liheap to help defray this burden.
