The Hidden Tax on Poor Homes

Why Some Families Pay More for the Same Light and Heat

When we talk about utility bills, we often use “average” numbers — but averages hide an uncomfortable truth. Not all homes are built the same, and families living in older, drafty, or poorly insulated housing often pay much more just to stay warm in winter or cool in summer.

The Hidden Tax No One Talks About

Imagine two families:

• One lives in a newer, energy-efficient home. Their monthly electricity use might be about 500 kWh, leading to a bill of around $100 after the June 2025 ComEd increases.
  
  

• Another family, renting in an older building with leaky windows and aging systems, might use 800–1,000 kWh each month for the same basic comfort. Their bill? Anywhere from $149 to $184 a month.
  
  

Simply because of their housing, low-income families face an extra $50–$80 a month — a hidden tax that never shows up in statistics, but weighs heavily on their lives.

The “Double Tax” of Peak Days

On top of higher usage, poor families face another penalty: peak pricing during extreme weather.

• Utilities call on households to use less power on sweltering afternoons or freezing mornings. Wealthier families may have smart thermostats, newer appliances, or flexible routines that let them shift energy use.
  
  

• But a single mother can’t delay cooking dinner until midnight. A child can’t study without lights during a peak alert. An elderly neighbor can’t sit in a stifling apartment without a fan.
  
  

While businesses can forecast their yearly energy use and even hedge against it, families cannot predict how many 95°F days will arrive in July or how cold January will be. For households in poorly insulated housing, every heatwave or cold snap multiplies their bills.

This means the poor pay a double tax:

1. Higher usage because of their housing.
   
   

2. Higher rates because they cannot avoid peak demand.
   
   

Why This Matters Now

In 2025, utility costs for Illinois families soared:

• ComEd bills rose an average of 45%.
  
  

• Ameren customers saw summer supply prices jump from 8.3¢ to 12.2¢ per kWh.
  
  

For families in older or drafty homes, these hikes aren’t just percentages — they are impossible choices between food, medicine, and light.

What Our Faith Teaches Us

Blessed Frédéric Ozanam reminded us: “Charity is the Samaritan who pours oil on the wounds of the traveler who has been attacked. But it is justice’s role to prevent the attack.”
Catholic Social Teaching calls us to protect human dignity and the common good. Allowing hidden penalties on the poor because of where they live and when they cook meals is neither fair nor just.

What Needs to Change

We believe Illinois must:

1. Adopt true two-tier utility pricing: separate business/industrial demand from essential household use. Families should not subsidize corporate expansion.
   
   

2. Expand energy assistance programs for low-income households, accounting for the real costs of older housing and peak days.
   
   

3. Invest in weatherization and energy efficiency for rental housing, so tenants are not punished for conditions they cannot control.
   
   

A Call to Action

We cannot remain silent while neighbors like Jennifer — a single mother living on $568 a month — receive electric bills of nearly $300. These are not just numbers; they are choices between light and food, between safety and survival.

👉 That is why we are asking you to stand with us. Please sign and share our petition to the Illinois Commerce Commission, the Governor, and local leaders. Together, we can demand fair pricing and expanded protections for Illinois families.

✍️ [Insert Petition Link]