H 753 Vermont House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

An act relating to utility service disconnections and ratepayer protections

This bill, the "Vermont Energy Equity Law" (H 753), directly affects residential utility customers in Vermont by preventing forced disconnections under specific circumstances. It requires the Public Utility Commission to adopt rules banning disconnections during extreme heat and mandating that utilities halt disconnections if a physician certifies a health risk from service loss. Utilities must also create plans to reduce involuntary disconnections to the lowest feasible level in their service areas. The law aims to protect vulnerable households while aligning utility operations with state energy policy goals.

Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Governor

Introduced Jan 22, 2026 Last action Mar 18, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

As Passed By the House (UnofficialOpens in a new window) → As Passed By the House (OfficialOpens in a new window) · 3 edits · Mar 13, 2026

MINOR

The official version of H.753 (Vermont Energy Equity Law) is substantially expanded compared to the unofficial version, adding two new statutory amendment sections that were absent from the earlier draft. The official version now directly amends 30 V.S.A. section 209(b) to mandate specific PUC rulemaking on deposits, disconnection grounds, procedures, extreme heat protections, and strategic plans to minimize involuntary disconnections, and amends 30 V.S.A. section 218d(a) to require that any alternative regulation framework include a goal of reducing involuntary disconnections to the lowest prudently feasible level.

Scope change

The bill expanded from containing only directive sections (instructing the Commissioner to report and the PUC to adopt rules by a deadline) to also including direct statutory amendments that impose binding requirements on the PUC's rulemaking authority under section 209(b) and on alternative regulation approvals under section 218d(a). This makes parts of the bill immediately operative law rather than contingent on future rulemaking.

REQUIREMENT

New Section 2 amends 30 V.S.A. section 209(b) to require the Public Utility Commission to adopt rules governing: conditions for deposits, extension of service lines, payment and return of deposits; grounds for disconnection or refusal to reconnect; reasonable procedures for disconnecting, reconnecting, and billing; a prohibition on involuntary disconnection during extreme heat; and a requirement that each utility establish a strategic plan to achieve the lowest prudently feasible number of involuntary disconnections, included in a Service Quality and Reliability Plan submitted for Commission approval.

New Section 3 amends 30 V.S.A. section 218d(a) to add eight findings the Commission must make before approving alternative forms of regulation for electric or natural gas companies, including that the framework promote reduced involuntary disconnections to the lowest prudently feasible number, provide incentives for renewable energy and decoupling utility revenue from sales volume, and establish balanced risk and reward structures.

SCOPE

The bill's scope expanded from a 2-page directive bill (report requirement plus rulemaking directives) to a 6-page bill that includes direct statutory amendments to the Public Utility Code, giving it immediate legal force on specific regulatory requirements rather than merely directing future rulemaking.

As IntroducedOpens in a new window → As Passed By the House (UnofficialOpens in a new window) · 7 edits · Mar 13, 2026

MODERATE

The House dramatically narrowed the bill from a broad utility disconnection reform package to a more targeted set of protections and a new annual reporting requirement. The introduced version mandated sweeping rulemaking changes to disconnection procedures, deposit rules, service extension terms, strategic disconnection-reduction plans, and alternative regulation criteria. The passed version replaces most of that with an annual data assessment by the Commissioner of Public Service and a narrower rulemaking deadline focused on extreme heat protections, expanding who can issue medical certificates, and respecting medical judgment on protection duration.

SCOPE

The introduced version's amendment to 30 V.S.A. section 209(b) was entirely removed. This had required the PUC to adopt rules governing deposit conditions, service line extension, disconnection grounds, reconnection procedures, billing procedures, and strategic plans to minimize involuntary disconnections included in Service Quality and Reliability Plans.

The introduced version's amendment to 30 V.S.A. section 218d(a) on alternative forms of regulation for electric and gas companies was entirely removed, including detailed criteria about least-cost energy, rate design, innovation incentives, and risk/reward balance.

REQUIREMENT

A new Section 2 requires the Commissioner of Public Service to conduct an annual assessment of involuntary residential service disconnections using monthly utility disconnection reports, consumer assistance records, and other data. Findings and recommendations must be reported to the House Energy and Digital Infrastructure Committee and Senate Finance Committee by January 15, 2027, and annually thereafter.

Requires the PUC to give due consideration to medical judgment regarding the duration of a health hazard indicated in a physician's certificate when establishing the disconnection protection period, rather than leaving the time period entirely to Commission discretion as in the introduced version.

TIMELINE

A new Section 3 sets a deadline of January 1, 2028 (or earlier if rulemaking on Rule 3.300 is initiated) for the PUC to adopt specific rules on disconnection protections.

ELIGIBILITY

The extreme heat disconnection curtailment now specifically allows a lower temperature threshold for households containing persons 62 years of age or older, adding an age-based vulnerability factor not present in the introduced version.

Clarifies that a licensed physician assistant or nurse practitioner may issue a physician's certificate under Rule 3.301(G), expanding beyond just physicians and other licensed health care providers as stated in the introduced version.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Mar 18, 2026

Introduced

Read 1st time & referred to Committee on Finance

upper

Mar 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

Report of Committee on Energy and Digital Infrastructure agreed to

lower

Mar 12, 2026

Lower · Passed

Rep. Torre of Moretown reported for the Committee on Energy and Digital Infrastructure

lower

Mar 12, 2026

Introduced

Action Calendar: Favorable with Amendment

lower

Mar 11, 2026

Introduced

Notice Calendar: Favorable with Amendment

lower

Jan 22, 2026

Introduced

Read first time and referred to the Committee on Energy and Digital Infrastructure

lower

2 primary · 0 co-sponsors