⚠️ The Most Expensive Electricity in the Continental U.S.
MA residential rate: 30.88¢/kWh — national average: 17.24¢ (EIA Dec 2025)
Your bill includes hidden costs: $1.36B RGGI carbon tax, RPS compliance, offshore wind contracts
H.5151 passed House 128-27 on Feb 26, 2026 — 107 pages, 48hr vote, zero public hearings
Vineyard Wind blade failure (July 2024) — debris across Nantucket beaches, $10.5M settlement
Gov. Healey boasted about blocking two gas pipelines, then claimed she never stopped them
State spent $534K fighting records requests that exposed zero compliance with its own climate rules
The Policy-to-Price Pipeline
MA Residential Rate
30.88¢
Per kWh (EIA Dec 2025)
National Average
17.24¢
Per kWh
Annual Overpayment
$982
Per household vs US avg
H.5151 Relief
~$150
Per year — 15% of gap
FL Rate
15.02¢
Per kWh — half of MA
Residential Electricity Rates — MA vs. Selected States (¢/kWh)
Source: EIA Electric Power Monthly Table 5.6.A, December 2025
MA Rate Premium Over National Average — Historical
Source: EIA, annual residential average rates 2015–2025
📋 Why Is Massachusetts Electricity So Expensive?
Massachusetts electricity costs are driven by a combination of policy decisions: the Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) mandating 35%+ renewable sources by 2030, RGGI — a cap-and-trade carbon tax that has extracted $1.36 billion from MA ratepayers since 2008, legally guaranteed "full cost recovery" for offshore wind contracts meaning ratepayers absorb all costs, blocking natural gas pipeline capacity (constraining supply), and building electrification mandates that increase demand while constraining supply. Each adds layers of cost that appear as line items on your bill.
Electricity Rate Deep Dive
⚠️ What's Actually On Your Bill
Supply charge: Actual cost of generating electricity — only ~40% of your bill
Distribution charge: Eversource/National Grid delivery — ~30% of bill
Renewable energy charge: RPS compliance costs passed to you — ~10%
Energy efficiency charge: Mass Save programs you may never use — ~7%
Transition charge: Paying off old utility contracts from deregulation — ~8%
RGGI costs: $1.36B in carbon auction costs since 2008 — passed to ratepayers
MA Electricity Bill Breakdown (Typical Residential)
Source: Eversource/National Grid rate schedules; DPU filings
MA vs. National Rate Gap Over Time
Source: EIA Electric Power Monthly, 2015–2025
New England Electricity Rates — All Among the Highest (EIA Dec 2025)
| State | Rate (¢/kWh) | vs. National | Annual Cost (600 kWh/mo) | Extra vs. US Avg |
|---|
| Massachusetts | 30.88 | +79% | $2,223 | +$982 |
| Rhode Island | 31.15 | +81% | $2,243 | +$1,001 |
| Connecticut | 25.30 | +47% | $1,822 | +$581 |
| New York | 27.39 | +59% | $1,972 | +$731 |
| US Average | 17.24 | — | $1,241 | — |
| Florida | 15.02 | -13% | $1,081 | -$160 |
| Texas | 15.87 | -8% | $1,143 | -$98 |
Source: EIA Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.A, December 2025.
H.5151 — The $9 Billion Illusion
⚠️ Passed House 128-27 on Feb 26, 2026 — Published as H.5175
107 pages released Tuesday. Ways & Means got 45 minutes to review.
126 amendments filed by 5pm Wednesday. Floor vote Thursday past 10pm.
Claims $9B in savings over 10 years. Reality: ~$150/yr per household (15% of gap).
Mass Save cuts backloaded to 2027 — zero relief this winter.
Adds 10 GW offshore wind + 10 GW solar mandates with 30-year contract authority.
Lobbying cost recovery ban stripped. GSEP pipe spending untouched.
Annual Impact Per Household
Source: EIA Dec 2025, bill text analysis. $9B ÷ 2.9M homes ÷ 10 years = $310 claimed.
Where the "Savings" Actually Come From
Source: Bill sections analyzed against verified Eversource rate breakdown.
Annual MA Overpayment
$982
30.88¢ vs 17.24¢ × 600 kWh/mo
Their Claim / HH / Year
$310
$9B ÷ 2.9M ÷ 10 yrs
Realistic Relief
~$150
Mass Save + ACP + net metering
Gap Closed
15%
$150 of $982. Still #4 most expensive.
State Comparison — Monthly Bill at 600 kWh
Source: EIA Dec 2025 rates × 600 kWh/month
NEW COSTS H.5151 ADDS TO FUTURE BILLS:
10 GW offshore wind — long-term contracts recovered through ratepayer tariffs
10 GW solar procurement — same cost recovery mechanism
Central Procurement Fund — tariff-funded for 30-year contracts
State offshore wind co-investment — ratepayer $ to "accelerate" developers
Inclusive Utility Investment — ALL ratepayers subsidize participants
Data center renewable energy mandate — added during 10pm session
"Somebody who's getting a bill today, tomorrow, next month — what are they going to see for relief? It's a lot more down the road."House Minority Leader Brad Jones (R)
This isn't reform. It's a remodel of the same machine.
You save $12/month starting 2027. Every new mandate becomes tomorrow's line item.
What They Cut vs. What They Kept
They trimmed branches while fertilizing the root.
Cuts vs. Untouched Policy Charges — $/yr Per Household
✂️ What They Cut
Mass Save — $1B cut$4.5B → ~$3.5B (DPU-approved budget, 2025-2027 cycle)
Net Metering — $380M / 10yrNew "supply rate" credits for large facilities
ACP Rebates — 70% returnedTEMPORARY — 3 years, then conditional triggers
Supplier Scams — BANNED$5M bonds, low-income protected, $100K fines
Utility Audits — NEWDPU can audit every 5 yrs. Penalties can't hit ratepayers.
~$150/yr
Realistic Savings
🔒 Kept + Added
🔒 Net Zero by 2050Driving $377/yr in policy charges — UNTOUCHED
🔒 50% Emissions Cut by 2030Legally binding sublimit — UNTOUCHED
📈 10 GW Offshore Wind by 2040EXPANDED — only 800 MW contracted in a decade
🆕 10 GW Solar by 2040NEW mandate — costs "shared collectively"
🏛️ New Procurement AgencyDiv. of Clean Energy Procurement — tariff funded
💰 Central Procurement FundRatepayer money for 30-year contracts
💰 Offshore Wind Co-InvestmentYOUR money to "accelerate" developers
💸 Inclusive Utility InvestmentALL ratepayers subsidize participants' upgrades
❌ Lobbying Ban — STRIPPEDHealey proposed banning utility lobbying cost recovery. House killed it.
❌ GSEP Pipe Spending — UNTOUCHEDGas utility pipe replacement costs soaring.
$377/yr
Policy Charges — Untouched + Growing
The Speed Run — 107 Pages in 48 Hours
45 MIN
Ways & Means Review
vs
99.97% LESS TIME
48 HRS
Public to Floor Vote
vs
180 DAYS
Healey's Timeline
90× FASTER
Tue Feb 24
107-page bill dropped
Ways & Means releases text. Members get 45 minutes to vote it out. No public review.
Wed Feb 25
126 amendments — 5pm deadline
Reps get ~24 hours to read 107 pages. Environmental activists circle meeting room chanting "Save Mass Save."
Thu Feb 26
House vote — 128-27 → H.5175
Marathon session past 10pm. Uyterhoeven amendment to remove Mass Save cuts fails 17-137. Published as amended H.5175. Referred to Senate Ways & Means.
New procurement bureaucracy
10 GW offshore wind mandate
10 GW solar by 2040
Central Procurement Fund
State wind co-investment
Inclusive Utility Investment
Solar licensing regime
DER provider licensing
V2G interconnection
Thermal energy labor rules
Highway transmission
Gas co. geothermal
Community solar (4 pgs)
Utility asset leasing
Flexible interconnection
Renewable natural gas
Gas just transition
Data center renewables req.
"This just can't be how we legislate. It doesn't make sense."Rep. Erika Uyterhoeven (D-Somerville)
Michlewitz on the 2030 mandates: "The membership was not ready for that conversation today."
They know the mandates are the problem. They won't touch them. The money flows the other direction.
Offshore Wind — Billions in Costs, Foreign Profits
Vineyard Wind Settlement
$10.5M
Nantucket blade failure
Plymouth Turbine
Collapsed
Nov 2025 — blade in cranberry bog
Contract Structure
Full Cost Recovery
Ratepayers absorb ALL costs
Developer Origins
🇪🇸 🇩🇰 🇳🇱
Spain, Denmark, Netherlands
⚠️ The Offshore Wind Failure Timeline
July 2024: Vineyard Wind turbine blade fails — debris across Nantucket beaches
Oct 2024: GE Vernova reaches $10.5M settlement with Nantucket
Nov 2025: Plymouth wind turbine — 100-foot blade collapses into cranberry bog
2023–2024: Multiple offshore wind contracts cancelled or renegotiated at higher prices
Section 83C guarantees developers "full cost recovery" + utilities get 2.75% profit
H.5151 expands to 10 GW offshore wind + adds state co-investment with developers
Offshore Wind Projects — Who Gets Paid
| Project | Developer | Parent Company | Country | Status |
|---|
| Vineyard Wind 1 | Avangrid / CIP | Iberdrola 🇪🇸 / CIP 🇩🇰 | Spain / Denmark | Blade failure, operating |
| New England Wind 1 | Avangrid | Iberdrola 🇪🇸 | Spain | Development |
| New England Wind 2 | Avangrid | Iberdrola 🇪🇸 | Spain | Development |
| SouthCoast Wind | Shell / Ocean Winds | Shell 🇳🇱 / EDPR 🇫🇷 | Netherlands / France | Renegotiated higher |
Source: BOEM filings; developer public disclosures; state procurement records
📋 "Full Cost Recovery" — What It Means for You
Under Massachusetts law (Section 83C), offshore wind power purchase agreements include "full cost recovery" provisions. Utilities can pass 100% of contract costs to ratepayers. Developers — foreign companies like Spain's Iberdrola and Denmark's Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners — are guaranteed revenue. If costs increase, if turbines fail, if contracts need renegotiation: ratepayers absorb every dollar. Utilities collect a guaranteed 2.75% margin. The risk sits entirely with Massachusetts households.
The Mandate Stack — Policy Decisions Driving Your Bill
⚠️ Every Mandate Adds Cost
RPS: 35% renewable by 2030, increasing annually — compliance costs on your bill
RGGI: $1.36 billion extracted since 2008 — $200M/year and rising
Net-Zero 2050: Economy-wide carbon neutrality — massive infrastructure costs ahead
Building Electrification: New construction mandates increase demand
Pipeline Opposition: Healey boasted about blocking pipelines, constraining supply
Energy Storage: 5,000 MW by 2035 — who builds it and who pays?
Massachusetts Energy Mandates & Their Cost Impact
| Mandate | Requirement | Cost Mechanism | Who Pays |
|---|
| Renewable Portfolio Standard | 35%+ by 2030 | RPS compliance charges | Ratepayers |
| RGGI Carbon Tax | $1.36B total ($200M/yr) | Auction costs passed through | Ratepayers |
| Clean Energy Standard | 80% by 2050 | Additional procurement | Ratepayers |
| Offshore Wind | 10 GW by 2040 (H.5151) | Full cost recovery PPAs | Ratepayers |
| Solar Mandate | 10 GW by 2040 (H.5151) | Tariff-funded procurement | Ratepayers |
| Energy Storage | 5,000 MW by 2035 | Utility rate base | Ratepayers |
| Building Electrification | No new gas | Higher electric demand | Ratepayers + Homeowners |
| Net-Zero 2050 | Economy-wide neutrality | $130B–$400B+ in infrastructure | Everyone |
Source: MA DOER; DPU filings; Climate Act (2021); Clean Energy and Climate Plan; H.5151 bill text
RGGI Total (2008–2025)
$1.36B
Carbon tax from MA ratepayers
2025 Alone
$200.4M
Up from $28M in 2008
Recent 5-Year Avg
$149.6M
2021–2025 average per year
Direct Bill Relief
~15%
Of RGGI proceeds returned
RGGI Carbon Tax — MA Auction Proceeds by Year ($M)
Source: RGGI Inc., MA Proceeds by Auction (2008–2025). Total: $1.36 billion.
How RGGI Proceeds Are Spent (All RGGI States)
Source: RGGI Proceeds Report 2023
📋 The Double-System Problem
Renewable energy is intermittent. Massachusetts ratepayers pay for the renewable generators AND for conventional backup plants that must stand ready. This "capacity cost" adds billions annually. You're paying for two parallel power systems — one that works sometimes, and one that must always be ready. No other industry works this way.
Follow the Money — Who Benefits
⚠️ The Lobbying Loop
Foreign wind developers spent $4.7M+ lobbying MA legislators
Smith, Costello & Crawford collected $1.41M from Avangrid + Vistra. Partner dated Energy Chair Jeff Roy.
Crawford personally donated $59,150 to 115 legislators
Rep. Cusack: 60% of Nov fundraising = energy industry during S.2967 debate
Eversource + National Grid: $439K lobbying in H1 2022 alone
H.5151 stripped Healey's proposal to ban utility lobbying cost recovery
Green Energy Lobbying Totals (MA Secretary of State Records)
| Entity | Country | Lobbying Total | Primary Firm |
|---|
| NextEra Energy | FL | $1.64M | Multiple firms |
| Ørsted | 🇩🇰 Denmark | $1.03M | BCB Government Relations |
| Avangrid/Iberdrola | 🇪🇸 Spain | $930K | Smith, Costello & Crawford |
| Vistra | TX | $529K | Smith, Costello & Crawford |
| SouthCoast Wind/Shell | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | $357K | Commonwealth/Dewey Square |
| REAL (Trade Group) | — | $256K | O'Neill and Partners |
| TOTAL | | $4.74M | 49% foreign-owned |
Source: MA Secretary of State Lobbyist Public Search, 2020–2025
The Funding Chain — Who Pushes the Mandates
| Entity | Type | Funding | What They Push |
|---|
| Acadia Center | Advocacy | Barr Foundation, Energy Foundation | RPS increases, RGGI, electrification |
| Environmental League of MA | Advocacy | Barr Foundation, Bloomberg | Net-zero mandates, offshore wind |
| Barr Foundation | Private Foundation | Amos & Barbara Hostetter | $30M+/yr in climate grants |
| Energy Foundation | Pass-through | Hewlett, Packard, Bloomberg | State-level clean energy policy |
Source: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer (Form 990); OCPF; Boston Globe (Dec 2025)
📋 The Loop
Private foundations fund advocacy groups. Those groups lobby Beacon Hill for mandates. Legislators pass laws with "full cost recovery" for developers. Foreign developers get guaranteed contracts. RGGI extracts $200M/year from ratepayers. Utilities pass all costs through. Utility lobbyists donate to legislators. Legislators pass more mandates. Massachusetts households pay the highest rates in the continental U.S. Everyone in the loop gets paid except you.
$534K to Hide Climate Non-Compliance
They mandate the rules, then don't follow them. Then spend your money hiding it.
Legal Fees to Fight Disclosure
$534K
Paid to a Boston law firm since April 2025. $417K from "Climate Adaptation" funds. $117K from "Environmental Affairs Admin."
Agency Compliance Reports Filed
ZERO
State agencies required to file annual emissions reports since 2019. Sworn testimony: not a single report. Zero inspections.
Healey Climate Agenda Estimate
$130B
Administration's own estimate through 2050. Fiscal Alliance Foundation independent estimate: $400B+.
Records Request Response
NONE
Both DEP and the Comptroller claimed "no responsive records" when payment details were requested.
"While Massachusetts was accusing Exxon of climate deception, the state was fighting a records request that exposed its own failure to comply with one of its own climate rules."Paul Diego Craney, Massachusetts Fiscal Alliance — Boston Herald, March 2026
The Hypocrisy Chain
STATE SUES EXXON
For "climate deception"
→
EXXON REQUESTS RECORDS
On MA's own compliance
→
STATE FIGHTS DISCLOSURE
$534K in YOUR taxes
SWORN TESTIMONY
Zero reports since 2019
→
ZERO ENFORCEMENT
No inspections taken
→
SAME STATE: $130B+
In new climate costs for YOU
🔒 Massachusetts Transparency Failures
One police dept demanded $1.8 million for license-plate-reader records
In Lexington, a school employee discussed inflating production costs to deter requesters
MA has one of the weakest public records systems in the country
$534K came from "Climate Adaptation and Preparedness" funds — meant for climate action, spent on lawyers
They mandate $130B in climate costs. They don't follow their own rules. They spend your money hiding it.
The $534K in legal fees could have funded actual compliance — or eased ratepayer burden. Instead: lawyers.
⛽ Gasoline vs. Utility Energy — A 15-Year Cost Comparison
📊 The Core Finding: Two Very Different Markets
MA gasoline tracks the US average within ±3% — a true market price that rises and falls with crude oil
MA electricity is 79% above the US average in 2025, up from 27% above in 2010
MA natural gas rose 97% (2010–2025) vs 30% nationally — pipeline blockage amplified every price spike
Even the 2022 all-time gas price record ($3.98/gal MA) was closer to the US average than MA electricity is today
Regular Gasoline — MA vs US Annual Average ($/gal) · EIA pswrgvwall.xls
Source: EIA Weekly Retail Gasoline Prices, MA All Formulations vs US All Grades. Annual averages from uploaded EIA data.
Residential Electricity — MA vs US (¢/kWh)
Source: EIA Electric Power Monthly; Fall River Reporter (2025); BLS CPI Boston area
MA Premium Over US Average — All Energy Types (%)
Gasoline and Diesel from EIA XLS. Electricity and nat gas from EIA/BLS published data.
NE Diesel vs US — Annual Average ($/gal) · EIA psw18vwall.xls
Source: EIA Weekly On-Highway Diesel Prices, New England PADD1A vs US. Annual averages from uploaded EIA data.
Full Price History — Real EIA Data · Annual Averages
| Year | Gas US | Gas MA | MA± | Diesel US | NE Diesel | NE± | Elec MA (¢) | Elec US (¢) | Elec± |
|---|
Gasoline/Diesel: EIA pswrgvwall.xls, psw18vwall.xls (annual averages from weekly data). Electricity: EIA Electric Power Monthly + BLS.
⛽ Why Gasoline Stays Close to the US Average
Gasoline is a nationally traded commodity priced off crude oil. There is no state legislature that can mandate a premium on crude. When oil fell in 2015–16 and again in 2020, MA gasoline fell with it. State taxes add a small fixed premium, but no policy can prevent the price from dropping when markets drop. Utility energy is the opposite: every legislative mandate creates a permanent floor. Rates never fall when markets fall — they only add new layers on the way up.
Annual Household Total Energy Burden — MA vs US ($)
Electricity (600 kWh/mo) + Natural gas (700 therms/yr) + Gasoline (500 gal/yr)
Computed from EIA annual averages. Hover to see the annual MA overspend.
⚖️ The Equivalence — What It Would Take in Gasoline
The Gasoline Equivalence
MA utility mandates cost the average household $1,946/yr more than the US average. To generate that same extra burden through gasoline alone (500 gal/yr), prices would need to reach:
$6.86
per gallon
131% above today's MA price of $2.97
$1.85 above the all-time US record of $5.01 (June 2022)
PRICE GAUGE — $/GALLON · SCALE: $0–$8
Price Comparison — What's Real vs. What Would Be Needed
Scale: $0–$8.00/gal · Vertical line marks the 2022 all-time record ($5.01)
│ = 2022 all-time US record ($5.01/gal) · Scale: $0–$8.00/gal
The $3.89/Gal Breakdown
Where each cent of the equivalence comes from
⚡ Electricity mandate premium
+$2.00/gal
$1,001/yr extra ÷ 500 gal/yr = $2.00 per gallon equivalent
🔥 Natural gas pipeline/mandate premium
+$1.89/gal
$945/yr extra ÷ 500 gal/yr = $1.89 per gallon equivalent
Total rise needed from today's $2.97
+$3.89 → $6.86
Monthly Hidden Burden
$162/mo extra — what it looks like in everyday terms
$162
extra per month vs US avg
55 gal
equivalent gallons at $2.97
1,529 mi
worth of driving at 28 MPG
The Outrage Asymmetry
A 50¢/gal gasoline spike dominates headlines, triggers Congressional hearings, and produces emergency price-gouging investigations. The utility mandate premium is 8× larger — and generates almost no public reaction at all.
50¢ gas spike (gets headlines)$250/yr
MA utility mandate premium (silent)$1,946/yr
Scale: same axis, both bars proportional. The gas spike bar is not a rounding error — it is genuinely that much smaller than the utility premium households quietly absorb every year.
How the utility premium compounds over time
2010
MA extra burden: ~$537/yr
Electricity 27% above national avg. Gas pipeline intact. Natural gas at market price.
2015–2017
Gas spike then crash — utility rates keep climbing
Gasoline fell from $3.40 → $2.11 and back. MA electricity rose through the entire cycle, unmoved by market forces. The divergence begins in earnest.
2017
Pipeline blocked — natural gas premium widens
Access Northeast killed. MA nat gas supply constrained. Every subsequent price spike hits MA harder than the rest of the country.
2022
Record gas prices — still can't match utility premium
MA gasoline hit $3.98/gal — the highest in 15 years. Outrage was nationwide. Yet the utility mandate premium that year was already larger than the gasoline overspend.
2025
Gasoline below national average — utilities at record high
MA gasoline is $0.13 cheaper than the US average. MA electricity is 79% more expensive. The market delivered relief. Policy did not.
Gasoline would need to reach $6.86/gal — a price never seen in US history — to impose the burden MA utility mandates already impose today.
The market delivered affordable gasoline. Policy blocked affordable electricity. The $3.89/gal permanent surcharge is already here. It's just on your electric and gas bill, not the pump.