31-03-2025
Lawmaker argues it's a ‘moral imperative' to address high energy costs alongside climate change
A worker installs a heat pump, which have been a key feature of Maine's transition to cleaner energy. (Photo via Oregon Department of Energy)
While the struggle for low-income residents to afford their power bill is not new, Rep. Sophie Warren believes that the transition to clean energy needs to prioritize such economic justice issues to ensure no one is left behind in the state's efforts to address climate change.
Last session, the Scarborough Democrat introduced a bill that sought to bolster support for low-income residents to access energy efficiency and weatherization programs.
Although that bill died, part of what Warren had hoped to achieve eventually came to fruition when the Maine Climate Council for the first time included in updated Climate Action Plan strategies to lower the energy burden on Maine residents.
Though Warren applauds that work, she introduced LD 1037 to go a step further by requiring the climate council to include in its annual report to lawmakers specific recommendations for how to reduce the portion of Mainers' income that is being spent on electricity and home heating fuels.
During a public hearing for the proposal Monday, Warren told members of the Legislature's Environment and Natural Resources Committee that she wants to ensure the work continues into the future, regardless of who sits on the council or serves in the executive branch.
'As a small, rural state with higher-than-average rates of poverty and some of the highest comparative, I both believe it is a moral imperative we fight poverty alongside climate change but also that to do so is economical in the long run,' Warren said.
For low-income households in Maine, the average energy burden is 14% based on 2018-2022 data, according to the Maine Energy Plan published in January. That is nearly three times higher than the statewide average across all income levels.
The Maine State Chamber of Commerce supports Warren's bill, encouraging what they described as a 'thoughtful' shift to clean energy that doesn't inadvertently increase costs for Maine businesses, said Maine Chamber Government Relations Specialist Ashley Luszczki.
For example, she pointed to energy intensive businesses, such as manufacturers and food processors, that rely on cost-effective, reliable energy to stay competitive. Despite the state's current statutory goal of using 80% renewable energy by 2030 and 100% by 2050, renewable sources don't provide the affordable and consistent baseload power large-scale industrial operations need, Luszczki said.
In 2023, Gov. Janet Mills called for those timelines to be moved up, asking instead for the state to strive for 100% clean energy by 2040. The chamber sees Warren's bill as a way to meet climate goals while lowering energy costs.
'A strong economy and a sustainable environmental future must go hand in hand,' Luszczki said.
The Office of Public Advocate, which advocates for Maine utility ratepayers, also supports this bill, saying that the affordability of energy must be taken into account when considering new climate policy.
While the Governor's Office of Policy Innovation and the Future — which manages the Maine Climate Council — agrees with the goal of the legislation, it is opposed to the proposal. Current law already requires the council to consider household energy burden and affordability, argued Senior Advisor Brian Hubbell.
Additionally, the most recent climate action plan from November 2024 includes multiple strategies and recommendations in those areas, including one to 'comprehensively analyze household energy burden in Maine in 2025, including all energy sources, and set a target for reducing the energy burden for low-income residents by January 2026.'
Even with those recommendations already spelled out, Warren said her proposal is still necessary because it would commit in statute the prioritization of considering poverty in climate efforts.
'I see formalizing this additional consideration of energy burden within the Council's framework and ensuring it remains in statute as its own distinct priority is key to achieving the long-term commitment,' Warren said.
If there is a need for a more detailed analysis of energy burden and how to reduce it, Hubbell said it would be more appropriate for the Governor's Energy Office to complete that work and include it in its biennial energy plan.
The most recent iteration of that plan published in January also already includes recommendations for reducing the energy burden on low- and moderate-income households. These include conducting regular analyses of household energy costs, increasing awareness of assistance programs and expanding education on weatherization and other energy efficiency measures.
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