Utility and heating disconnection rules by state

Utility disconnection rules - list of consumer protections by state when it comes to turning off utilities. Most states have laws, rules, and regulations in place that determine when an electric, gas, or heating utility company may disconnect a customer’s service. The rules may prevent a shut off during the winter or summer months and there are also protections for people with medical issues.

Find a list below of all state regulations that protect consumers from utility disconnections, both year round shut offs and seasonal. In additional to seasonal protection laws, many states also limit (or make illegal) utility shut offs for people with medical conditions. States will regulate if a utility company can turn off the heat in the cold winter months or laws determine if an energy company can turn off electricity or lights during the hot summer among other scenarios.

Many states also help prevent electricity disconnections also help in national emergencies or disasters, such as hurricanes, snowstorms, or flood. Additional details on the specific state laws when it comes to utility disconnections are below

Community Action Agency Services

. Do not hesitate to ask a local non-profit community action agency, a pro-bono law firm, or your utility provider for the latest rules and regulations for your state. After reviewing the laws that your state may have in place to protect customers from illegal heating or utility disconnections, if you think the utility company is not following the regulation, then you can take action.

All states have law firms that provide free legal advice on disconnections (heat, water, electricity, etc.), and attorneys can advise you on your rights as well as help you get your power back on.

Find free legal advice on dealing with utility and heating service disconnections. Also, contact your state’s utility regulatory commission for more details or report issues. The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC) maintains the definitive, regulator-run directory of every U.S.

state (and D.C.) public utility/service commission with links to each commission’s official site. NARUC’s official directory of state regulatory commissions is https://www.naruc.org/about-naruc/our-mission/regulatory-commissions/ List of state regulations regarding when utility shutoffs are not allowed Alabama - Residential utility providers (electric and natural gas) must observe certain restrictions on disconnection, particularly when cold weather is forecast.

Under the Alabama Administrative Code, no residential gas or electric service may be disconnected when the forecasted temperature is 32°F or below on the day of disconnection. Prior to any termination, utilities are required to provide at least five days’ written notice of intent to disconnect for nonpayment.

Beyond cold-weather protections, Alabama law requires utilities to adopt “ reasonable tariff rules” addressing termination when “life or health may be threatened” or where special consideration is warranted due to age or handicap. Alaska - Utilities must follow their tariffs and the general requirement to be “just and reasonable.” Notably, Alaska statute prohibits charging a separate fee solely for connection or disconnection of service.

One important consumer right in Alaska is for tenants: a landlord is prohibited from unilaterally shutting off utilities as a method of eviction or retaliation. A landlord must follow formal legal eviction procedures. Delay disconnection of heating and utilities for 15 days if household member is age 65 or older , seriously ill, disabled, or dependent on a life support system.

Also no disconnection is allowed by state law for seriously ill, disabled, or if the customer has entered into a payment plan. Arizona - Utility and power companies are advised not to terminate residential utility service when the customer has an inability to pay their bill and where weather will be especially dangerous to health, which is usually considered 32° F or below for winter and triple digits for summer.

For disconnected customers, notice requirements under “with notice” terminations include a minimum of 10 days’ advance written notice before the disconnection date. The notice must state the amount due, the termination rule violated, the date of planned termination, and the customer’s right to dispute.

The utility may only disconnect on or after the date specified, and must accompany the disconnection with a personal visit to the premises (i.e., the disconnection cannot happen remotely without a presence). Arizona utilities are encouraged to avoid termination in extreme weather (e.g. below freezing or triple-digit heat) when disconnection would be dangerous to health.

Many utilities also offer medical certificate protections that postpone termination for medically vulnerable customer. Arkansas -: Arkansas maintains a Cold Weather Rule that protects residential electric and natural gas customers from disconnection if the National Weather Service forecasts that the temperature will drop to 32°F or below within the next 24 hours.

Additionally, regulated utilities must give at least five days’ written notice before suspending service for nonpayment. If mailed, an extra three “mail delivery” days must be allowed. Special protections are available for customers age 65 or older or those with disabilities: utilities must identify such customers and make personal contact for delinquency, and they may not shut off service on extremely hot days (≥ 95°F) for those customers.

Many utilities (like Entergy Arkansas) explicitly state a “hot weather rule” forbidding disconnection of elderly or disabled customers when forecast is 95°F or above. If a customer or household member has a serious medical condition that would worsen with loss of service, a physician may submit a medical certificate, triggering a delay or prohibition of disconnection while verified.

California - A customer who provides a medical certification from a licensed physician and/or surgeon that termination of their utilities will be life threatening and who is unable to pay in normal period shall be permitted to amortize their bills over a period not to exceed 12 months. Regulations ensure that if a payment plan is implemented that service can’t be disconnected.

Read more on California utility disconnection laws specifically established for Southern California Edison and Pacific Gas and Electric. Colorado - Colorado rules give households a strong medical pause. With a medical certificate from a licensed professional, disconnection can be postponed for up to 90 days, typically once in any consecutive 12-month period.

Utilities and the Colorado PUC direct customers to request payment arrangements as the medical hold nears its end, or to contact the PUC’s Consumer Affairs unit if they can’t reach agreement. There is no statewide temperature-based moratorium, so the 90-day medical certification is the key statewide protection.

Connecticut - Connecticut maintains one of the country’s clearest winter moratoria

Community Action Agency Services

. Low-income customers with a “hardship” designation are protected from shutoff each year from November 1 through May 1. Enrollment is via the utility or a Community Action Agency and must be renewed annually. Separately, and crucially, service must be provided year-round if loss of power would be life-threatening, regardless of arrears, and customers can avoid termination by entering and honoring a payment arrangement.

These protections are administered by PURA and reflected in utility customer materials. Delaware - Delaware’s Title 26 Administrative Code §3002 imposes weather-based limits. During the heating season, a utility may not terminate for nonpayment on any day when the 8:00 a.m. temperature is 32°F or below (measured within 50 miles of the residence).

During the cooling season , no termination is allowed when the 8:00 a.m. National Weather Service forecast indicates a Heat Index of 105°F or higher for that day. Consumers should still expect standard disconnection-notice procedures and can raise complaints with the PSC if a termination violates these temperature protections.

District of Columbia - The District uses both temperature and medical safeguards. By statute, a utility cannot disconnect residential electric service on the day before and the day of a forecast of extreme temperature - defined as 95°F or above or 32°F or below, and similar limits apply around weekends and holidays that coincide with those forecasts.

Beyond weather, the PSC’s: Consumer Bill of Rights requires at least 15 days’ notice before shutoff . Critically, if a customer provides a physician’s certificate stating that disconnection would be detrimental to health or safety, the utility must postpone disconnection for up to 21 days, and the postponement can be renewed once for an additional up to 21 days if the certificate is renewed and a payment plan is in place.

Florida - Florida has no statewide temperature-based moratorium on disconnections. However, there are statutory protections for “medically essential service” customers: before any scheduled nonpayment shutoff, the utility must attempt telephone contact no later than 24 hours beforehand, and utilities administer medically essential programs that typically provide a short payment-extension (often ~30 days) upon doctor certification, with annual recertification.

Georgia - Georgia sets both time-since-billing and weather/medical limits at the state level. The PSC states that residential electric service may be disconnected only after a bill is at least 45 days old and after proper notice. Wea