Kentucky bill to ban extreme weather power shutoffs fading fast as legislative session nears a close
FRANKFORT, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) — Advocates working to stop power disconnections during extreme weather say they are disappointed in state lawmakers, as a bill that would stop power companies from cutting off electricity and gas in the winter and summer will likely not pass this legislative session.
House Bill 377 would stop power cutoffs during the coldest parts of winter and the hottest parts of summer, a practice already in place in most states. With only a few working days remaining in the legislative session, the bill likely will not make it.
“It seems like common sense – a temporary pause on disconnections when the weather is dangerous,” Cara Cooper with Kentuckians for Energy Democracy said.
Cooper and other advocates have been coming to the Kentucky Capitol for years to urge state lawmakers and leaders to take action. They say Kentuckians are already struggling to pay their growing utility bills and will suffer without a permanent or temporary pause on disconnections during extreme heat.
“The bills are going up. Luckily, we’ve made it through the worst of the cold season, but summer is right around the corner, and if this legislation doesn’t pass by the end of the legislative session, folks are going to be in the same situation all the way through next winter,” Cooper said.
Advocates are also turning to Gov. Andy Beshear, asking him to issue a moratorium on power cutoffs for the summer. However, Beshear said during his Thursday press conference that he cannot issue that type of pause without a major emergency declaration.
“We were able to do it during COVID. We had a major state of emergency there. We don’t currently have one,” he said.
Some Kentucky utility company leaders have previously said the bill is not needed because they already do not shut off power during extreme temperatures.
Data in a report from the Appalachian Citizens Law Center shows that in fiscal year 25, electric utilities made almost 269,000 disconnections. That is an 87% increase compared to the previous year.
