Summer electric bills sizzle as the cost of cooling climbs

Key Takeaways

• Summer electric bills sizzle as the cost of cooling climbs toggle caption Brandon Bell/Getty Images Temperatures are climbing, and so is the price of electricity.
• That's a one-two punch that could result in sharply higher utility bills this summer.
• "Climate scientists think this could be the hottest summer on record or at least close to it," says Mark Wolfe, who heads the Energy Assistance Directors Association (NEADA).
• "So families need to use more of an increasingly expensive product to stay cool this summer.
• And that's going to be tough." NEADA is projecting that electricity bills will be 8.5% higher this summer than last, on average, with residents in some Southern states seeing even bigger increases.