Renner Barsella, renner.barsella@sierraclub.org
DES MOINES, IA -- Advocates from across Iowa, including Sierra Club, NAACP, Des Moines Black Liberation Movement, and other environmental groups, are calling on the Iowa Utility Board to ban utility shut-offs until November 1, 2020.
“Iowans are navigating the ongoing pandemic with uncertainty on all sides. As the aftermath of the derecho has proven, losing utility service in a time of crisis is devastating for families already struggling with the economic and health burdens of the pandemic. This is especially true for Black and Brown communities disproportionately impacted by both the COVID-19 crisis and utility shut offs,” said Katie Rock, Campaign Representative for the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal Campaign.
“We strongly agree,” said Betty Andrews, President of the State NAACP Conference. “The NAACP believes utilities should embrace a business model that is human rights based, protective of the environment, yet financially sound. Protection against disconnection during the pandemic is essential. Whether it is extremes in heat, extremes in cold, or the need for electricity to power life saving devices like respirators or medicines requiring refrigeration not to mention just providing light, electricity/heating/cooling is essential, not just for quality of life, but also for maintenance of life!”
The letter submitted to today to the IUB read as follows:
Dear Iowa Utilities Board Members:
As the COVID-19 crisis intensifies, communities recover from natural disasters, and children head back to school, Iowa residents behind on their utility bills are facing a dire situation.
We appreciate the IUB for issuing the moratorium on utility disconnections in March, and we acknowledge that when the IUB decided in late May to lift the moratorium, that Iowa appeared to be re-opening. However, COVID-19 cases have peaked again and many Iowans remain out of work. The situation thus warrants reconsideration of extending the moratorium. As Iowa reckons with a COVID resurgence, growing unemployment, heat advisories, recovery from the August 10 derecho, and as more families prepare for virtual learning and working from home for the foreseeable future, the need for Iowa residents to have certainty in their utility connections for so many essential services and appliances also increases.
Iowa residents are now in more risky and precarious positions -- both economically and health-wise -- as the impacts of community spread and lost income compound. We are concerned that many residents who are out of work or households that are down an income for the last five months will be in a position of having to choose between paying their rent, putting food on the table, or paying their utility bills.
While vulnerable Iowa residents having their electricity disconnected is unjust at any time, it is particularly dangerous as COVID-19 cases continue across the state, economic impacts intensify, and children shift to virtual learning. We share your concerns that this pandemic has laid even more bare the disparities that are occurring in our state, and the inequitable price low-income communities and communities of color are paying. We understand and appreciate the current focus of the IUB and other stakeholders on ensuring financial assistance is available and accessible to Iowa residents, and on utility-specific disconnection plans. We also find that the present state of the COVID-19 pandemic in Iowa warrants an extension of the moratorium into and through the school year.
We recognize that the Board, like all of us, is navigating uncertain times, and that changing circumstances and new information about COVID-19 presents unprecedented challenges to making and implementing plans. With much respect for the work you are doing and for the responsibility you hold, we ask you to consider extending the moratorium to November 1 in order to protect the health, safety and welfare of our citizens.
Thank you for your care and concern for the people of Iowa during this crisis. We look forward to your response.
Sincerely,
Betty Andrews, Iowa-Nebraska NAACP
Pamela Mackey-Taylor, Sierra Club Iowa Chapter Director
Peter Rolnick, Citizens’ Climate Lobby State Coordinator
Central Iowa Democratic Socialists of America
Clean Air Muscatine
Delaware County Energy District
Des Moines Black Liberation Movement
Environmental Law and Policy Center
Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement
Iowa Environmental Council
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3.5 million members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.