When Clermont County resident Paul Napier received a $700 electric bill this summer, he thought he might lose everything.
“No groceries, no car. I wouldn't be able to pay my lot rent on my mobile home,” Napier, who is on Social Security, said. “[The] stressful situation that I'm already in — and it would have just been 10 times worse.”
Napier lost his wife earlier this year. And in addition to grieving her, he had to figure out how to pay the same bills without her Social Security benefits.
Already, he said they had to operate on a tight budget in recent years, as health issues kept them on a fixed income and their monthly electric bill crept up. Five years ago he said it was typically less than $200. This year, it’s been at least about $500 a month.
“There's a story in the Bible — Job. I feel like Job. I lost my income. I lost my wife,” Napier said. “And now I'm just getting ready to lose my home if everything keeps going up.”
Napier is not alone.
The average retail price of residential electricity in Ohio increased about 56% from July 2016 to July 2026, according to the most recent data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
That’s a steeper increase than the United States as a whole, where the average cost of residential electricity went up by about 44% over the same time period.
Napier, with the help of county administrators, signed up for a payment plan based on his income that he said cut his bill down to $176.
“I hope the money never runs out for those guys because that was wonderful that they could do that,” Napier said.
Julie Brown, the Home Energy Assistance Program coordinator for Clermont County Community Services, encourages everyone struggling with their bills to see if they qualify for help.
“It doesn't discriminate. It is affecting everyone of every income level. I mean, electric bills are astronomical right now,” Brown said. “And there's no end in sight.”
What help is available?
Certain customers of Public Utilities Commission of Ohio-regulated utilities can sign up for a payment plan like Napier, or reconnect their service for $175 — a resource that may be increasingly helpful, as more households have recently lost power due to nonpayment.
Rachel Sheets, of Butler County’s community action agency, SELF, said families at or below 175% of the federal poverty line could also potentially receive three versions of payment assistance per year: the Home Energy Assistance Program, a summer crisis program and a winter crisis program that starts Nov. 1.
For a family of four, annual income cannot exceed $57,750.
More people have called to seek help paying their utility bills, Sheets said, but her office sometimes has to turn people away because they don’t meet the income requirements.
"It's hard not being able to assist people in those places. We call it the benefits cliff,” Sheets said. “Once somebody starts making a little too much money, it's like all of the benefits that are available to them based on their income kind of evaporate.”
Sheets said her office will often direct people to companies’ like Duke Energy’s own programs or charities.
One such organization in Clermont County, Milford Miami Ministries, provides once-a-year financial assistance to people who are struggling with their utility bills.
“It's rare that we ever turn anybody away, that we can't help at least with some,” said Steve Reis, the Christian organization’s operations manager, who added they typically just look for proof of need such as a disconnection notice.
So far this year, Reis said the ministry has given out about 4% more financial assistance compared to this time last year, which was already a record year for the organization.
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