Gov. Maura Healey plans to announce Thursday that the state will spend $180 million as part of a bid to temporarily reduce residential electric and gas bills this winter.
Under the plan, electric bills would be reduced by 25% and natural gas bills by 10% for “every Massachusetts residential utility customer” in February and March 2026, with the state covering the cost of some of the reductions.
The proposal, unveiled by the governor’s office early Thursday ahead of Healey’s State of the Commonwealth address in the evening, comes as energy affordability has become a central policy and political issue on Beacon Hill and is shaping early debate around the 2026 gubernatorial race.
“I called on the utilities to lower bills this winter, and now relief is on the way,” Healey said in remarks released by her office.
Some of the relief is truly temporary, and it only applies to residential customers of National Grid, Eversource, Unitil, Liberty Gas and Berkshire Gas.
The administration said its use of $180 million from alternative compliance payments can only go toward electric ratepayer relief and covers an estimated 15% reduction in electric bills. The rest of the near-term reduction for electric customers comes from deferred payments that will be recovered by the utilities on bills in April through December, the administration said.
And the 10% reduction in February and March gas bills will be recovered from most customers (all except Liberty Gas customers) during the off-peak months of May through October, Healey’s office said.
The announcement follows heightened scrutiny over rising and volatile utility bills, as well as the causes of those increases. In December, National Grid proposed gas rate increases averaging about $24 per month for customers in its Boston Gas territory and roughly $25 per month for customers in its Colonial Gas territory.
Regulators have also stepped in. Earlier this winter, the Department of Public Utilities opened an investigation into electric and gas delivery charges, examining whether certain fees should be capped, consolidated or eliminated. The probe was initiated after Healey noted in an October letter that some customers saw bills increase by as much as 50% compared with the prior winter.
Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rebecca Tepper said the administration views the bill reductions Healey announced Thursday as short-term relief while broader reforms are pursued.
“Families cannot support big winter energy bills right now, so we called for more relief,” Tepper said, adding that the administration continues to push for structural changes aimed at lowering costs over time.
Healey has filed a bill intended to increase the energy supply, allow utilities greater flexibility to secure lower-priced power, and reduce delivery costs. House members are meeting privately this week to draft a bill meant to lower costs. Environmental activists raised concerns last year about any retreat on decarbonization plans.
Operations launched this month on a new transmission line bringing hydropower into Massachusetts, which officials estimate will lower electricity costs by about $1.50 per household per month.
With Democrats nationally emphasizing affordability as a core message, energy costs have taken on added political significance in Massachusetts. Healey’s decision to highlight ratepayer savings ahead of her annual address places added emphasis on the topic as Beacon Hill wades deeper into legislative and election cycles.
