1 in 5 Americans cut or consider cutting food costs to pay electric bills
A Consumer Reports survey finds rising electricity bills are squeezing household budgets, prompting Americans to cut or consider cutting grocery spending and reduce heating or cooling to uncomfortable levels.
About one in five Americans have cut back on groceries or considered buying less expensive food to afford their electricity bills, according to a Consumer Reports survey reported by USA Today. Roughly one in four have reduced heating or air conditioning to uncomfortable levels or considered doing so.
The findings show how electricity expenses are reaching beyond discretionary purchases and into basic household needs. Respondents also reported cutting back or considering reductions in restaurant meals and travel, underscoring the range of financial trade-offs associated with paying for power.
The nationally representative survey covered 2,003 U.S. adults. Among respondents who had lived in the same home for at least three years, 81% said their electricity bills had increased over that period, while more than a quarter reported increases of between 20% and 49%.
About three-quarters of respondents whose bills had risen said the increases strained their household finances. Those with annual household incomes below $85,000 were more than twice as likely as higher-income respondents to say the increases caused a lot of strain, according to Consumer Reports.
The grocery and thermostat findings combine actions people have already taken with changes they have considered. They therefore do not mean that every respondent counted in those groups has already reduced food spending or endured uncomfortable temperatures. Even with that distinction, the results point to pressure on essential household spending.
Respondents identified several perceived contributors to their electricity costs. Utility company profits were cited by 45%, increased demand from data centers and artificial intelligence systems by 38%, changing fossil fuel prices by 37%, and infrastructure repairs and upgrades by 36%. Those responses describe consumers’ views rather than establish how much each factor contributed to individual bills.
The survey also found widespread skepticism about oversight. About three-quarters of Americans said they trusted state utility regulators only a little or not at all to protect their interests. Just 1% expressed complete trust, according to USA Today’s account of the findings.
Large electricity users were a particular focus of respondents’ concerns about allocating costs. Some 84% supported a separate electricity rate category for users such as data centers. Half said data centers should cover all infrastructure costs for projects built primarily to serve them, while another 39% said they should pay more than other customers.
Consumer Reports has launched Power Smarter, an initiative intended to help households understand energy costs and advocate for affordable electricity. It includes the free CR Bill Decoder, which accepts electricity bills and provides explanations of billing terms, rates and fees, alongside information about state-specific assistance and potential savings.
The organization plans to use anonymized information from submitted bills to examine price trends and investigate what is driving costs. That effort addresses another obstacle identified in the survey: among Americans who read their electricity bills, 38% found them somewhat or very difficult to understand.
Primary source: USA Today. Newzly rewrites and structures source reporting for clarity; verify critical details at the original.