As the nation sweats through another hot record In summer, extreme heat is increasing utility bills with the temperature.
About 7 in 10 Americans say extreme heat has had a minor or major impact on their electricity bills in the past year, according to a recent poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. About 40% of the 1,143 adults surveyed nationwide in late July said they were hit with unexpected charges on their utility bills because of the heat. storms, floods, heat or wildfiresTwenty-two percent of respondents had to change or cancel their travel plans due to extreme weather, the survey found.
THE cost of cooling your home This summer, income is expected to increase by nearly 8% in the United States, to an average of $719, compared with $661 during the same period in 2023, according to projections from the National Energy Assistance Directors Association and the Center for Energy Poverty and Climate.
Nearly 20 percent of low-income families do not have air conditioning, which can pose a health risk during hot weather, according to the NEADA and CEPC report. In some cases, families may have air conditioning but choose not to turn it on for fear of not being able to pay the electric bill.
“Like walking in soup”
For North Carolina resident Levena Lindahl, summer now means covering windows with blackout curtains and closing off entire rooms to limit monthly electricity bills for air conditioning. “Going up the stairs is like walking through soup. It’s so hot,” said Lindahl, 37.
Lindahl’s monthly electricity bill is about $200, double what it was a few years ago.
Jim Graham, 54, told the AP that his monthly electric bill now stands at more than $350 — even with the thermostat set at 80 degrees Fahrenheit — a significant increase from what the Phoenix, Arizona, resident was paying about a decade ago.
Overall, people who don’t believe in climate change are less likely to say they’ve been affected by extreme heat, according to the AP-NORC survey. In contrast, about 8 in 10 Americans who believe in climate change say extreme heat has had at least some impact on their electricity bills.
Mario Cianchetti, a 70-year-old retired engineer, installed solar panels and heat pumps on his Sedona, Ariz., home to reduce his electricity bills. “When you retire, you only have one fixed income. I didn’t want to have to deal with rising energy costs,” Cianchetti told the AP.
According to the European climate agency Copernicus, global temperatures will have increased by 1.48°C by 2023 compared to pre-industrial times. With temperatures fluctuating unevenly around the world, heat can be dangerous. Several parts of the United States have broken temperature records this summer, and Las Vegas reached a scorching 50°C on July 7.
—The Associated Press contributed to this report
