Electricity bills in Massachusetts have increased by 50% over the last decade, making it more expensive for households and businesses to operate. The average residential bill is now over $300 a month, according to EnergySage, putting Massachusetts 29% above the national average.
This challenge is hardly unique to the commonwealth. Electricity bills are spiking across the U.S., as aging infrastructure and slow deployment of affordable power — such as solar, wind, and battery storage as well as low-cost modernization upgrades to the electric grid — make it difficult to keep pace with demand.
As a result, electricity prices have become a burgeoning national political issue that ranks increasingly high among voter concerns. That angst will grow as we become more dependent on electricity in every part of our lives — from the heat pumps warming our homes, to powering our electric vehicles, to fueling the data centers that underpin our digital economy, including cloud computing and artificial intelligence…