New Study: Utility Savings are Regressive. 5 Easy Steps to be informed:

Who Conducted The Study: The University of Michigan’s Urban Energy Justice Lab 

Show me how utility savings benefit the wealthy? 

• For every kilowatt-hour efficiency programs saved for low-income residents, up to 22 kilowatt-hours were saved for higher-income customers

Where’s the legislative/regulatory issue in all this?  Michigan’s Energy Waste Reduction requires that utilities seek “the most cost-effective programs which will benefit all Michigan residents and businesses.” But, the policy doesn’t account for the fact that low-income programs generally cost a lot more per-kilowatt-hour savings
 

What’s the hook from the study? That utilities underspent on low-income electric programs by around $74 million

What 3 factors increase KW costs for low income residents?

• outreach can be more challenging
• customers often aren’t asked to contribute as much money
• housing conditions can increase the cost of improvements.

Midwest Energy News| In Michigan, study shows utility energy savings mostly benefit wealthier customers