Energy Affordability Top Priority in 2025 Connecticut Legislative Session

Posted by Kat Burnham on Jul 2, 2025 2:52:23 PM

Energy Affordability Top Priority in 2025 Connecticut Legislative Session

Prior to the 2025 Connecticut legislative session, the issue of energy affordability came into sharp focus during summer 2024 when ratepayers noticed a higher public benefits charge starting July 1st. Further contributing to the utility bill shock, the electric companies initiated an accelerated 10-month span to recover costs that went uncollected during the Covid-era moratorium. On top of that, Connecticut experienced several heat waves that spiked customer electricity usage and subsequent public frustration that carried into this year’s legislative session.

Policymakers across the political spectrum largely agreed that tackling energy affordability was among the top priorities for 2025 – but elected officials diverged on how to remedy the situation.

Advanced Energy United agrees the status quo isn’t working and pursued legislation that would facilitate new technologies and strategies to better manage the energy system and assist ratepayer cost-savings – focusing specifically on bringing down transmission and winter heating costs. The legislative session still delivered some progress, while highlighting where continued work is needed to bring down costs for consumers.

Among the wins of this year is a policy contained in an omnibus act, Senate Bill (SB) 4, that will enable advanced transmission technologies (ATTs). ATTs such as grid-enhancing technologies (GETs) and advanced conductors can offer benefits to Connecticut and New England, including increasing grid capacity that accelerates deployment of new clean energy projects, reducing financial costs associated upgrades and replacements of new transmission infrastructure, and reducing costly grid congestion. United worked with co-chairs Senator Norm Needleman and Representative Jonathan Steinberg to convene a roundtable with the Energy & Technologies Committee, administration officials, and our member companies at the beginning of the legislative session to lay the groundwork for this progress, and we were proud to contribute to the resulting policy.

United worked closely with legislative leaders and agency experts to develop ATT policy recommendations. Representative Jaime Foster was instrumental in championing the stand-alone bill that contained several key concepts that were ultimately folded into SB4.  The new policy will ensure electric utilities demonstrate that they are considering grid-enhancing technologies (GETs) and advanced conductors when considering grid investments.

Beyond ATTs, the omnibus bill was far reaching, making changes to the public utility sector – many of which are relevant to United’s advanced energy member companies. Of note, it authorized bonding for an electric vehicle charging program, authorized securitization for certain financed utility services, modified various renewable energy programs in the state (including the renewable portfolio standard), initiated a study of the public benefits charge, required time-varying rates, supported new nuclear energy projects, required electric utilities to disclose their ISO-NE votes, directed PURA to add or evaluate new low-income protections, established a thermal energy network grants and loans program, and introduced a pilot program for gas and electric demand response led by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP).

As we have consistently asserted, an affordable energy future can’t happen without making transformative changes to the natural gas industry. Thermal energy networks are a highly efficient way to electrify homes while mitigating increases to electric winter peaks and leveraging the gas utility workforce in the clean transition. And the demand response pilot will help ratepayers take control of their energy usage while giving both electric and gas utilities new tools to manage peak growth and emergency and reliability events.

In parallel, HB 5004 succeeded in crossing the finish line, becoming law on June 25th. That bill established new greenhouse gas reduction and zero-carbon generation goals, supported job growth in the renewable energy, energy efficiency, and electric vehicle sectors, allowed schools to apply for grants to install air- or ground-source heat pumps, required DEEP to develop a plan to affordably install heat pumps (especially for environmental justice communities, in long-term care facilities, and where residents are at risk during heat waves), considered electrifying and enhancing the efficiency of state buildings, supported solar canopy development, and more.

Unfortunately, neither SB 4 nor HB 5004 tackled the long-term role of natural gas in Connecticut’s energy future head on. United supported language initially included in HB 5004 to open an uncontested proceeding to examine Connecticut’s use of natural gas, clarify where ratepayer dollars flow and how they are being used, and identify new ways to contain costs in both the short- and long-term. This provision would have added Connecticut to the growing list of at least 13 other states taking the growing challenge of heating affordability seriously. Regrettably, the provision did not make it into the final bill. To prevent the looming crisis of ever-increasing gas bills, we must continue to build consensus to advance this issue in future sessions.

Policymakers are right to treat this broad issue of energy affordability with urgency—and to ensure the public understands what is really driving costs. But they must begin with the facts - renewable energy resources are not the main driver of upward pressure on the Connecticut utility bills. About 77% of the 2024 public benefit charge increase alone was tied to long-term nuclear procurement contracts, specifically the requirement that electric utilities purchase power from the Millstone nuclear plant. Decisionmakers and public officials who think natural gas may be Connecticut’s solution often ignore high-cost estimates, product supply chain delays, and lengthy project timelines. Building and repairing nuclear plants or gas facilities and pipelines takes immense time and financial resources – clean energy resources, including customer-centric efficiency and load flexibility, on the other hand, are often the more affordable choice and the quicker choice for deployment to meet demand and ease cost pressures.

This year’s session showed both modest progress and the ongoing challenges that come with making big transitions. As we look ahead, United will continue working with lawmakers, agencies, utilities, and advocates to chart a path forward that modernizes the grid, advances cost-effective clean energy, and makes our energy system more affordable and resilient. 

Topics: State Policy, Connecticut

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