Sub-freezing temperatures in Iowa and Texas in February have Brighton residents feeling the heat of higher utility bills.

The extreme cold led to the demand for natural gas and electricity to jump across the country which resulted in prices for natural gas and electricity on the wholesale market to soar.  In a letter to Brighton residents, city officials said, “The City of Brighton owns its own natural gas system which means that these prices affected the City of Brighton as well as our residents. The four-day disaster alone will increase an average residential customer’s natural gas bill a minimum of 4-7 times what they paid for their entire January 2021 natural gas bill. In some communities, the estimate is closer to 10-15 times last month’s bill.”

Councilwoman Rose James says residents were caught between a rock and a hard place, “This isn’t a product that you have a choice of whether or not to buy it. It’s a necessity to have your home heated. I think our temperatures were in the minus 15 to 20 (range) and so that’s where the law gets involved in it and the regulation. For me, I just want to know all those regulations were followed, that this wasn’t some opportunists trying to take advantage of the freeze in Texas.”

Mayor Melvin Rich added other municipalities in Iowa are experiencing similar surges in their February natural gas costs and the city has authorized staff to set up a 12-month payment plan for residents to ease the burden of their March gas bill.