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Gov. Healey announces new plans to curb Mass. energy bills – including an immediate credit

Residential electric customers will receive $50 off their bills in April.

Gov. Maura Healey. Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe

March 10, 2025

2 minutes to read

On Monday, the Healey-Driscoll administration announced its plan to lower Massachusetts residents’ energy bills by a collective $220 million starting in April, and save $5.8 billion for electric and gas customers over the next five years.

The announcement comes weeks after Gov. Maura Healey pledged to reduce energy costs in the commonwealth, as many grappled with skyrocketing utility bills this winter.

Healey outlined her plan, beginning with a $50 credit residents will see on their April electric bills.

“I know that’s not a ton of money compared to what people have been paying, but it’s something,” said Healey at the press conference in Lowell. “It is something and every dollar counts.”

The governor also announced that a first-in-the-nation moderate-income discount rate and an expanded tiered-income discount rate for lower-income customers will provide “more discounts to more people.”

In addition, her administration is taking action to eliminate utility bill extras and is reviewing alternative ways to finance new electric grid infrastructure. The administration is also taking steps to end programs that have achieved their goals, such as the Solar Carve-Out program, and remove them from monthly bills.

Lastly, the administration is working to reduce the spikes customers see in their bills so as to allow families to plan.

The governor intends to file an energy affordability and independence bill in the coming weeks.

“I, too, was surprised by my gas bill this last couple of months,” said the energy and environmental affairs secretary Rebecca Tepper at the press conference in Lowell. “My husband actually thought it was a mistake.”

But it wasn’t. Tepper said the spikes result from relying on fossil fuels, which have a fluctuating global market.

She said the state needs “independence” and ways to produce energy here, such as through wind and hydro power, to meet the demand.

Healey said that the federal administration’s removal of wind from the equation was a major blow to the state.

“We’re not a state that drills oil, right?” said Healey. “What does Massachusetts have? We have the Saudi Arabia of wind right off our shores.”

Even with more wind projects being deployed, it’s not enough. Healey said gaining access to hydropower from Canada was a big win that the federal government is hindering with tariffs.

Healey said her administration is committed to lowering energy costs despite the roadblocks.

“It’s been heartbreaking to hear that families resort to energy-limiting behaviors to manage their energy expenses,” said Mary Wambui, the asset manager for affordable housing at the press conference. “Our ability to lower energy bills has been limited. Sometimes urgent calls for climate action have overshadowed the concerns of low and moderate income households struggling with high energy bills.”

Wambui said many households in gateway cities face an additional burden of higher electricity costs if they consider switching from gas to heat pumps for climate reasons.

The Department of Public Utilities (DPU) is working to expand heat pump rates across utilities. Proposed changes could save the average heat pump customer up to $1,000 during the winter heating season.

Wambui said the plan “offers hope for Massachusetts residents advocating for this critical issue.”