As 2022 is coming to an end, several residents across the United States will be happy to see the end of the year. Indeed, the year was mainly dominated by a cost of living crisis where people are paying high prices for everything from food to electricity.
The post-COVID recovery has been far from smooth, with supply chain and labor shortages driving up the price of goods and services. This, combined with sanctions imposed on Russian oil imports, caused inflation to peak at 9.1% in June this year.
By raising interest rates, the Federal Reserve was able to curb the runaway rate, with October’s inflation rate falling 0.5 percentage points from September’s rate of 8.2%. However, while the rate of inflation may come down, the costs of basic public services are still far higher than they were before the pandemic hit in 2020.
Heating costs
The other factor that should concern the average American is the fast approaching winter. It is expected that the warming of your home will be 27% or 10% higher depending on whether you use oil or electricity.
Although programs such as the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and Bloat Assistance are designed to help low-income families manage their energy costs by providing subsidiary , it will still be up to individual households to mitigate the higher projected heating costs.
States with the cheapest electricity rates
The following states have the lowest electricity rates per kWh:
- Nevada
- Utah
- Idaho
- Maryland
- Oregon
States with the most expensive electricity tariffs
The following states have the most expensive electricity rates per kWh:
- Hawaii
- California
- New York
- Alaska
- Connecticut
States with the cheapest natural gas tariffs:
- Idaho
- Utah
- Alaska
- Montana
- New Jersey
States with the most expensive natural gas tariffs:
- Hawaii
- Georgia
- Ohio
- Maine
- Kentucky