Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Make a sustaining gift today to support local journalism!
0000017a-15d9-d736-a57f-17ff913a0000

Report: Low Income Households In New England Spend More On Energy

Flikr Creative Commons / Claudio Schwarz

A new study says New England has the largest gap in energy burdens between low-income energy burdens and median energy burdens than any other region in the country. 

Household energy burden is the percentage of annual income spent on yearly energy bills.

Get stories about climate change and the environment in your inbox. Sign up for our newsletter today.

The study from the advocacy group American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy found that low-income households in the region spend a median of 10.5 percent of their income on energy.

That’s about three times higher than the median energy burden in New England.

The report found that while low-income and communities of color consume less energy than wealthier households, they’re also more likely to live in less energy efficient housing, and that inefficiency is a major contributor to higher energy burdens.

The council also found that low-income households, Black, Hispanic, Native American, renters and older adult households all have disproportionately higher energy burdens than the national median household.

The study says that clean energy investments in things like energy efficiency, weatherization and renewable energy on the part of local governments, could provide a long-term solution to lowering those high energy burdens.

NHPR's stories aren't behind a paywall. Help pay for the local journalism you trust - become an NHPR member today!

Daniela is an editor in NHPR's newsroom. She leads NHPR's Spanish language news initiative, ¿Qué Hay de Nuevo, New Hampshire? and the station's climate change reporting project, By Degrees. You can email her at dallee@nhpr.org.
Related Content

You make NHPR possible.

NHPR is nonprofit and independent. We rely on readers like you to support the local, national, and international coverage on this website. Your support makes this news available to everyone.

Give today. A monthly donation of $5 makes a real difference.