The Mass Save program is administered by utility companies, including Berkshire Gas, Eversource, and National Grid to promote energy efficiency in the commonwealth.
“It's a program that offers incentive to upgrading your home in certain areas," explained Democratic State Auditor Diana DiZoglio. "They offer things like heat pumps, light bulbs to create increased energy efficiency in your home.”
DiZoglio says her office’s investigation into the program shows that lower-income communities in Massachusetts – particularly those in the less populous western portion of the commonwealth – are getting shortchanged.
“These working families are paying into their energy efficiency, this surcharge that appears on their bills, and they're paying much more into this program than they're actually getting back in benefits," she continued. "And that's deeply concerning. For example, in North Adams, people are contributing nearly twice as much as the state average to Mass Save even though incomes in that area are less than half of the state median. And in Agawam, folks are paying almost three times more than the state average despite earning far less.”
She said that the Gateway Cities of Massachusetts – urban hubs that continue to rebuild their economies in a post-industrial world – are also paying more for less from Mass Save.
“These are communities where people are already struggling financially," DiZoglio told WAMC. "I come from the cities of Methuen and Lawrence, also Gateway Cities. So, it's concerning to hear that cities like Pittsfield and Springfield are making contributions to Mass Save that are really high compared to the state average. In Pittsfield, for example, people earn about two thirds of the state average income, but they're contributing over one and a half times the average into the program.”
The report shows that the higher population density and rate of renters in a community, the lower the benefits received from Mass Save.
“That's problematic," said the auditor. "We're in a housing crisis right now, right? So, people are struggling to make ends meet, they are renting in a lot of our cities and towns, and they are working to save up, potentially be able to someday be a homeowner themselves, but they're just getting slapped with costs like this on their utility bills, for example, that they're not able to really fully get the benefit from.”
DiZoglio says it’s not okay for working-class communities to subsidize costs for wealthier communities, and says the state legislature should update laws around Mass Save and conduct oversight hearings.
“Utility companies should not be the ones to administer the Mass Save program," she told WAMC. "Utility companies are the ones who receive compensation for the transmission and distribution of electricity and natural gas to residents and businesses. They are paid for these services. We need to make sure that the program that is responsible for reducing energy costs in the commonwealth is not being overseen and run by the utility companies who benefit from these costs.”
In a statement, the Mass Save program defended its efforts to offer energy efficiency measures to commonwealth residents. It said that DiZoglio’s audit “fails to analyze substantial efforts underway by the Program Administrators as part of the 2025-27 plan, including targeted programming for the state’s 21 Designated Equity Communities, enhanced incentives for moderate income residents and renters, increased language access, and multilingual outreach.” It also cited approval from the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities for “an unprecedented level of equity-focused investments in the recent plan – representing a significant step already underway to address the report’s recommendations.”
Peter Marchetti is mayor of Pittsfield, one of the Gateway Cities DiZoglio’s report shows is being underserved by Mass Save.
He says that before the audit, he was a fan of the program- but now, whatever benefits it offers are marred.
“If it was working to its full capacity, it would help a lot of our residents with older homes make improvements to make their homes more efficient in terms to heat,” Marchetti said.
He agrees with DiZoglio that having the program run by utility companies that profit off energy distribution must be examined.
“I think the utilities companies controlling their own destiny in terms of, if you're a utility company, do you want to really make homes more efficient, or do you want to make more money based on what the heating cost may be?" the mayor posed to WAMC. "So, utility companies should come out of the mix.”
