DENVER — Bobbie Boyd is in a losing battle against near triple-digit temperatures in northwest Arkansas.
As climate change ratchets up temperatures across the U.S., millions of the poorest Americans grapple with the same agonizing decisions as Boyd — between perilous indoor heat or paying costly bills. While President Joe Biden has invested billions into federal programs that subsidize the poorest Americans’ energy costs, the money reaches only a fraction of the most vulnerable during the sweltering summer months.
“We’re likely to see the energy insecure population grow unless we have some pretty significant and substantial government intervention,” said Michelle Graff, who studies the federal subsidy at Cleveland State University. Still, in Arizona, the nation’s hottest state where roughly 650,000 low-income households qualify for the federal energy help for cooling assistance, only about 11,600 actually received it, according to the federal data.
While Arizona power companies are now banned from cutting off customers during the hottest months, last year nearly 3 million people had their power disconnected for failing to pay bills — a third within the three hottest summer months, according to data collected by the Energy Justice Lab. The poorest Americans and minority communities already live in hotter neighborhoods and many suffer without air conditioning at all. While there are tax credits and rebates to help install air conditioning, most remain out of reach for impoverished households.
“It’s because, just, lack of funds,” said Bruce Tonn, who studies the program at a Tennessee research nonprofit. Biden has since infused billions into the program, investments he touted Tuesday.