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House committee hears testimony on H.753 after uptick in utility disconnections
Summary
The House Energy and Digital Infrastructure Committee took testimony on H.753, which would create new planning and temporary protections to reduce residential utility disconnections; the Department of Public Service cited a return to pre‑pandemic disconnection levels and urged careful definition of metrics and limited burdens on small water utilities.
The Vermont House Energy and Digital Infrastructure Committee on Feb. 6 heard testimony on H.753, a bill that would require utilities to adopt plans and implement protections aimed at minimizing involuntary residential utility service disconnections.
Carol Flint, director for consumer affairs and public information at the Vermont Department of Public Service, told the committee the department used April as a proxy month for household hardship and that utilities’ reports to the Public Utility Commission showed an increase in disconnections when comparing April 2022 with April 2025. "Disconnections increased by about 31% between April 2022," Flint said, citing the PUC filings as her source. She reported 1,704 disconnections in April 2022 and said the April 2025 total supporting the 31% figure was 2,227; Flint noted she would confirm the exact 2025 count in submitted written testimony.
Flint said most disconnected residential accounts are later reconnected: "About 85% were reconnected," she told lawmakers, and that reconnections in the report are measured within a 15‑day window…
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