Americans could see a significant increase in home heating costs next year, adding to a spike in utility bills that helped drive a Democratic sweep in this month’s elections.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration released a report last week predicting that home heating costs will continue to rise next year — largely because natural gas prices are increasing as the U.S. exports more of the fuel abroad. It comes after President Donald Trump and Energy Secretary Chris Wright spent much of this year trying to encourage the rest of the world to buy a lot more American liquefied natural gas through trade deals.
The left-aligned group Climate Power is already framing Trump’s energy policy as the driver of escalating costs, a message it plans to ramp up before the midterm elections. Rising natural gas prices fit right into the effort to rally voters around the idea that Trump is making American life more expensive, Climate Power spokesperson Christina Polizzi said.
“The cost messaging is something that we know is just incredibly potent, and it really illustrates our point in a way that is really impactful,” she said.
