High energy burden and low-income energy affordability: conclusions from a literature review

Brown, Marilyn A.; Soni, Anmol; Lapsa, Melissa V.; Southworth, Katie; Cox, Matt

doi:10.1088/2516-1083/abb954

Title: High energy burden and low-income energy affordability: conclusions from a literature review

Journal Article · Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 EDT 2020 · Progress in Energy

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1088/2516-1083/abb954· OSTI ID:1898922

; Soni, Anmol;

; Southworth, Katie; Cox, Matt

In an era of U.S. energy abundance, the persistently high energy bills paid by low-income households is troubling. After decades of weatherization and bill-payment programs, low-income households still spend a higher percent of their income on electricity and gas bills than any other income group. Their energy burden is not declining, and it remains persistently high in particular geographies such as the South, rural America, and minority communities. As public agencies and utilities attempt to transition to a sustainable energy future, many of the programs that promote energy efficiency, rooftop solar, electric vehicles, and home batteries are largely inaccessible to low-income households due to affordability barriers. This review describes the ecosystem of stakeholders and programs, and identifies promising opportunities to address low-income energy affordability, such as behavioral economics, data analytics, and leveraging health care benefits. Scalable approaches require linking programs and policies to tackle the complex web of causes and impacts faced by financially constrained households.

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Research Organization:: Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE

Grant/Contract Number:: GR10001245; AC05-00OR22725

OSTI ID:: 1898922

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1731048; OSTI ID: 1898923

Journal Information:: Progress in Energy, Journal Name: Progress in Energy Vol. 2 Journal Issue: 4; ISSN 2516-1083

Publisher:: IOP PublishingCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United Kingdom

Language:: English

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