Keep the Lights On: PUC Opens Utility Disconnections Docket
Mahalo to everyone who took action on our previous alerts calling for utility disconnection reform to keep the lights on for financially vulnerable families! Your voices made a difference. Thanks to the many public comments submitted, the Hawaiʻi Public Utilities Commission (PUC) acknowledged community concern and has now launched a new docket to advance real solutions.
This shows that our collective voices are powerful—and they matter now more than ever. The PUC has opened a new docket (2025-0284) to formally investigate what disconnection policies are in the public interest.
In their words:
“Recognizing that electricity is a basic necessity for living…[t]he Commission will also use this docket to consider whether new disconnection policies should be adopted that could significantly reduce disconnections, help disconnected customers manage their debt, make it easy for customers to re-connect their electricity, and increase access to energy efficiency measures that can lower bills and prevent disconnections.”
This is a huge opportunity to adopt systemic reforms that protect our families, kūpuna, and communities from harmful shutoffs.
What’s At Stake
Energy burden: 80,000 households in Hawai‘i are energy-burdened, with 48,000 “extremely low-income” families spending up to 15% of income on electricity.
Disconnection harms: Shutoffs create severe financial, health, and safety risks—disproportionately impacting medically vulnerable residents, families with children, and communities of color.
Key Reforms We Need
The PUC’s Disconnection Report Memo recommends several important solutions including:
Low-Income Discount Rates: Directly reduce electricity costs for low-income households. Many utilities already have adopted bill assistance programs to offer a set amount of financial relief to low income ratepayers, which often takes the form of a static monthly bill credit. While these programs are better than nothing, they often fall short in addressing energy burden because they only offer a one-size-fits-all approach – whereas energy burden can vary dramatically from one household to another.
Percentage-of-Income Payment Plans (PIPPs): Cap utility bills at a manageable percentage of household income. PIPPs have been shown to be effective at addressing issues of affordability, and are currently in place in ten states, with some states, including Colorado and New Jersey, automatically enrolling households in PIPPs when they apply and qualify for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).
Lifeline Electricity: Limit a customer’s power to a certain level rather than disconnecting service. The amount of power provided is typically enough for some but not all essential needs and creates an incentive for customers to pay their bill without cutting them off completely. KIUC already practices this in their disconnection process.
Fee Limitations and Arrearage Management Programs: Help customers pay off past-due balances through structured repayment plans. Some states ban disconnect/reconnect fees to help struggling families. Hawaiʻi doesn’t have this rule, which means people face even more fees on top of their unpaid bill in order to restart their utility service, making it that much harder to reconnect after disconnections.
Energy Efficiency Programs: Assist low-income households in reducing energy usage and costs by helping them to access efficiency upgrades.
Weather-Based Disconnection Protections: Prohibit shutoffs during extreme weather conditions, such as periods of high heat and humidity.
Take Action
Your comments can help shape these reforms. Submit your comments today and tell the PUC why protecting vulnerable households matters.
Submit Comments Online: Written testimony can be submitted online here.
Enter your information: name, address, and email address.
Enter docket number: DOCKET NO. 2025-0284
Enter subject line: Utility Disconnection Practices
Position: Comment.
Comments: Enter comments or attach your own file. Specific format instructions are on the form.
Sample Comments:
Aloha Chair Asuncion, PUC Commissioners, and Staff,
My name is [Your Name], and I am a resident of [Your Island/Community]. I am deeply concerned about the wide-ranging impacts of utility disconnections. Mahalo for opening this new docket to formally investigate this issue and, hopefully, make much needed reforms.
The Disconnection Reform Memo shared by the Commission found that approximately 80,000 families in Hawai‘i are considered energy-burdened, with some spending up to 15% of their income on electricity. Alarmingly, disconnections doubled in 2023 compared to pre-pandemic levels, adding even more hardship to the lives of our most vulnerable and exacerbating the social and economic disparities that are tearing our social fabric apart.
[Include a personal story here, if you have one. They make are deeply impactful on decision-makers]
Please adopt policies to a reduce disconnections and promote energy security, including:
Low-Income Discount Rates to directly reduce electricity costs for struggling families.
Percentage-of-Income Payment Plan which would be a great step forward to alleviate financial burdens on the most income strained households by capping bills at an affordable percentage of household income.
Fee Limitations and Arrearage Management Programs to help customers pay off overdue balances through structured plans.
Energy Efficiency Programs to assist low-income households in reducing usage and costs through upgrades.
Weather-Based Disconnection Protections to prohibit shutoffs during extreme weather conditions, such as high heat and humidity.
Lifeline Electricity Programs that deliver a minimum of electricity to meet basic household needs, such as refrigeration, regardless of ability to pay, such as KIUC’s policy to provide 600 watts for overdue accounts.
Hawai‘i’s energy future must prioritize equity and justice for all residents, ensuring no one is left behind in the transition to clean energy. Systemic reforms like these are essential to protect vulnerable households, deliver meaningful relief, and promote long-term affordability for all ratepayers
Mahalo for the opportunity to share comments and for working to ensure every household can access the electricity needed to live safely and with dignity.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
Mahalo for taking action. Your voice will help ensure a just and equitable energy future for Hawai‘i.