Frustrated by the cost of your recent electric and gas bills? Wondering how to cut costs besides turning down your heat or turning off your AC? The good news is that DC still offers a variety of cost-cutting energy programs–for both homeowners and renters.
But, first, why are our energy bills so high? Certainly, the war in the Middle East is causing oil prices to rise, and that increase trickles down to all energy production. But in DC, energy increases started long before March 2026. A January 7, 2026 Axios article (https://www.axios.com/local/washington-dc/2026/01/07/why-dc-utility-bills-are-rising-again-this-winter) notes that from 2020 to 2025, DC electricity prices increased 93 percent, a larger increase than anywhere else in the United States and points to a perfect storm of causes for these spikes: rate hike approvals from DC’s Public Service Commission; the prevalence of huge data centers that are driving up utility costs across the region, DC’s small geographic area that limits its ability to expand and diversify energy production, and the extended cold weather in January and February.
Gas bills meanwhile, have increased approximately 6 percent annually since 2014, even though the typical DC residential gas customer uses 30 percent less gas today than in 2014. These rate increases were determined by DC’s Public Service Commission (PSC) which reports to the mayor while the DC Council, through its Committee on Business and Economic Development, sets the Commission’s statutory framework and holds annual performance and oversight hearings. From 2017 through early January 2026, Councilmember At-Large Kenyan McDuffie led the District’s PSC oversight. With CM McDuffie’s recent resignation from the Council in January, Ward 6 CM Charles Allen now heads this committee.
So, what can you–as a homeowner, renter, or apartment dweller–do to reduce your energy costs?
While federal incentives for solar have been eliminated, installing solar panels on your home makes more sense in DC than in any other state or municipality in the US. DC still offers a wide variety of solar programs–for homeowners and renters. DC’s Department of Energy and the Environment (DOEE) is your first stop for solar options (https://doee.dc.gov/service/solar-district) while Solar United Neighbors (https://solarunitedneighbors.org/locations/dc/) also has some excellent guidance on solar energy for homeowners and renters including information on how to identify a reputable solar installation company.
DOEE has teamed up with EnergySage (https://www.energysage.com/landing/home-solar/p/dc_doee/? to help District residents and businesses make the switch to solar energy by installing solar panels on their property or subscribing to a local community solar farm. The amount of solar energy you’ll be able to produce through a rooftop solar array will depend on how much sun reaches your roof and the weather. During some months, your array may produce more energy than you use and produce Solar Renewable Energy Certificates (SRECs). These SRECs can be sold and help offset the cost of your solar installation.
When installing a solar array on your home, one of the first questions you’ll be asked is whether you want to own your panels or lease them. Leasing panels means that you’ll pay significantly less installation costs as the installer (or some other party) will receive money from the sale of the SRECs produced through your system. Revolution Solar has been installing solar arrays on DC homes and businesses since 2017. Matthew Young, CEO of Revolution notes, “The average DC home will carry a 10 KW system that will cost approximately $30,000. If you opt to purchase your system versus leasing it, income from your SREC production coupled with your reduction in electricity costs from your solar energy production means that you can break even on your solar investment in six years.” But, regardless of whether you own or lease your solar array, you’ll see a significant reduction in your electric bill with the solar energy your system produces. In the case of this writer, during 2025, for four months, with our solar array alone (not counting SRECs we earned) we paid only $7.65 per month for our electricity bill (the Pepco delivery fee) while our bill for four other months was less than $20 per month. Those bills made our January 2026 bill, when our panels were covered in snow and not producing energy, a bit easier to swallow.
If you’re a renter, don’t have a solar-compatible roof, or you prefer not to install equipment on your property, you can still power your home with solar by subscribing to a community solar project or solar farm (see https://www.energysage.com/community-solar/). Thanks to virtual net metering (VNM), purchasing community solar is seamless and you’ll pay for it through your Pepco bill. The energy for your home will still flow through your existing Pepco system, and Pepco will distribute the amount of energy credits you purchase from the farm in the form of electricity throughout the grid. Pepco will apply bill credits to your monthly bill, reducing your charges. Community Solar subscribers see their electric bills reduced by 5-20 percent. DC offers other solar programs as well. Some residents qualify for DOEE’s Solar for All program that provides free energy to low- to moderate- income households. Participants must meet below average income criteria and can participate in Solar for All through single family solar or community solar programs.
If you’re looking beyond solar to reduce your energy costs, the DC Sustainable Energy Utility https://www.dcseu.com/residential-rebates/electrify) offers a wide array of rebates for the purchase or installation of more energy efficient appliances, electric panels, heat pumps and more for DC residents and businesses. For more than 15 years, the DCSEU has helped District residents’ lower energy costs. Ben Burdick, the DCSEU Managing Director, notes, “We’ve helped DC residents save some $2.2 billion in lifetime cost savings, including more than $120 million through residential rebates for energy efficient lighting and appliances and home electrification upgrades. Older household equipment–refrigerators, clogged dryers, and boilers can become major energy drains, driving up utility bills. We offer a range of programs designed to offset the cost of replacing these appliances with more efficient electric models, many of which are available regardless of household income.”
So let some solar sunshine in and think about upgrading some of those older appliances. It may make your next utility bill just a little easier to weather.
Catherine Plume is a lifelong environmentalist, a writer and dog lover. Follow her on Instagram @DC_Recycler
