Lowering energy bills starts at the community level. With more families feeling the pinch of rising costs, connecting people with the right resources can make a real difference in their monthly expenses. Here’s one example.
For years, a resident of Revere struggled to keep up with their utility bills. Then they attended a community event hosted by the local nonprofit All In Energy, where they met Carlos and received an Energy Bill Check-Up.
During the review, Carlos discovered the resident had been locked into a predatory third-party electric supplier contract—and had unknowingly been overpaying for more than three years. Carlos contacted the third-party supplier on the resident’s behalf, provided translation, and helped them switch back to the utility‘s basic service rate. This rate was more affordable and ensured that the resident would be added automatically to Revere’s municipal aggregation program, providing further energy cost savings.
With this personalized assistance, the resident reduced their monthly utility bill by more than 50%.
None of this would have been possible without that personal touch–someone who spoke Spanish, understood the community, and could skillfully navigate the complex world of utilities and energy efficiency.
That’s the difference we make when we invest in community outreach.
All In Energy was conducting this work in Revere thanks to an EmPower Massachusetts grant from the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, the state’s clean energy and climatetech economic development agency.
EmPower is a program aimed at increasing energy access and reducing energy burden for underserved populations in Massachusetts, such as renters and communities disproportionately impacted by environmental hazards. The program utilizes an approach that funds community-proposed and community-led solutions.
All In Energy received its first MassCEC EmPower grant in 2021, which allowed them to scale up their Energy Bill Check-Up solution. This growth enabled them to focus on reaching Spanish speakers in the North Suffolk and Merrimack Valley regions and connect residents with a range of financial assistance and energy-saving opportunities, including discounted gas and electric rates, utility bill assistance, repayment and forgiveness programs, heating fuel aid, community solar, and efficiency upgrades through Mass Save. The initiative is making a difference—Energy Bill Check-Ups are now available to residents of Cambridge, Chelsea, Framingham, Lowell, and Springfield.
MassCEC also launched the Home Modernization Navigator service in Chelsea, Framingham, Lowell, and Springfield to scale up these solutions and provide residents with more technical guidance on electric appliances and clean energy improvements.
To amplify their work, All In Energy is training other organizations to conduct their check-ups, including the City of Chelsea, GreenRoots in Chelsea, and La Comunidad in Everett.
These efforts underscore how important it is to meet folks in their communities, save them money as quickly as possible, build trust in the process, and use that initial connection as a catalyst for future energy efficiency and clean energy opportunities.
In these challenging times, it is critical to bolster and expand local resources that empower the most vulnerable members of our communities. Providing funding to organizations like All In Energy to support full-time staff is a key part of making that possible.
A resident’s journey toward clean, affordable energy might start with an Energy Bill Check-Up or with a call to the Home Modernization Navigator. What matters most is ensuring every resident has access to the tools and resources they need to build a cleaner, more affordable energy future.
Lisa Dobbs is a senior program manager on Massachusetts Clean Energy Center’s High-Performance Buildings team.