High temperatures and electricity disconnections for low-income homes in California

Alan Barreca (), R. Jisung Park and Paul Stainier
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Alan Barreca: University of California–Los Angeles
R. Jisung Park: Institute of Labor Economics
Paul Stainier: University of California–Los Angeles

Nature Energy, 2022, vol. 7, issue 11, 1052-1064

Abstract: Abstract Evidence suggests that households adapt to hot weather by employing energy-intensive technologies, such as air conditioning. Ensuing energy expenses might cause some low-income households to incur insurmountable energy debt and eventually become disconnected due to non-payment. Here we examine this possibility using electricity use and disconnection data for 300,000 low-income households from California 2012–2017. We find that each additional day with a maximum temperature of 95 °F causes electricity expenses to increase by 1.6% in the current billing period, and the relative risk of disconnection to increase by 1.2% 51–75 days later. In the context of climate change, a back-of-the-envelope calculation indicates the average risk of disconnection would increase by 12% if today’s weather resembled projected weather for the 2080–2099 period.

Date: 2022
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DOI: 10.1038/s41560-022-01134-2

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