This article provides an update on the state of residential utility arrears in New Jersey, where nearly 600,000 customers owe more than $570 million in back payments. Johnson explains that low income workers/households were hit by pandemic costs and losses particularly hard, but that middle...Read more
In this article, we see a western approach to the analysis of China's investment in cobalt. In the article we are told the US 'lost' in a race with China to secure Congo's cobalt supply, but again we see a very 'savior-like' description of the event. The US is painted to be Congo's safety net,...Read more
This news analysis discusses extreme heat and energy insecurities during the COVID19 pandemic. This article calls for an expansion of energy efficiency and bill assistance programs (e.g. expanding LIHEAP funding for summer months) along with a nation-wide utility shutoff moratorium to provide...Read more
Seeing countries with the most robust economies struggling to keep it together in a global pandemic like COVID-19, I wondered how Africa would cope if the virus seeped into the continent. This article chronicles what plight the continent is in, and fortunately what is being done to curb the...Read more
This article discusses the ending of the utility moratorium in Pennsylvania, which expired on November 9th, 2020. As of June, 800,000 customers were at risk of a utility shut-off post-moratorium, but that number is likely higher now. According to PUC's order, anyone whose household income...Read more
This article discusses a recent public official's mishandling of WAP (Weatherization Assistance Program) marketing. As often discussed by the Energy Vulnerability Project, energy assistance programs are not often widely known by those who need it. Such limited knowledge of the assistance...Read more
The article goes in-depth about the history of squatting in the city of Philadelphia and the situations that lead to squatting in cities like Philadelphia with high unemployment, homelessness, transient or intermittent housing, and high percentages of low-income households (Chicago for example...Read more
To be taking an energy vulnerability class during a pandemic like this I must say has been a blessing. This is because, with the knowledge I am attaining on this subject matter, I am beginning to understand what energy vulnerability is, and the extent to which it is a world-wide concern even in...Read more
Companies resumed shutoffs in a gradual way once the moratorium lifted. Companies hoped to give customers some leeway to gather funds to pay bills in their entirety or to get on payment plans. However, due to the economic hardships that households continue to experience due to the pandemic, many...Read more
Water rates have inflated four times faster since 2017. In city’s neighborhoods, 1 in 5 customers spent 10% or more of their income on water. PWSA (Pittsburgh’s local water supplier) has sent shutoff notices to 20% of their nearly 8000 customers who fell behind on their bills. Payment...Read more
This article includes background information on how the three stimulus bills passed to provide economic relief due to COVID-19 impacts LIHEAP. It describes a letter produced by a collective of 28 U.S. senators, based on data from a report produced by NEADA. Read more
This article describes two bills, one introducted to PA's senate and the other to PA's house, which would increase the state's renewable energy goal from 8% to 18% by 2026. This would increase the number of solar jobs from .5% to 5.5%. This could create nearly 1.6 billion in economic growth and...Read more