The rest run on a forecast temperature, on something the household has to file, or on nothing at all. Every state below carries its own commission’s words and the date the page was read.
9
States with a calendar window
the other 41 decide it another way
18
Where it has to be applied for
the protection does not arrive on its own
8
Reaching co-ops and city utilities
32 cover the regulated companies only
43
With the rule quoted and cited
of 50 states, read September 23, 2026
What actually decides it
Four different answers, and only one of them is a date
A winter moratorium is usually described as though every state had one and the only question were when it starts. Read all fifty and that is not what is there. Nine states publish two dates and stop a disconnection between them. Sixteen more will stop one only once the household has filed something, usually a financial hardship certification or a medical certificate, and a household that never files sits outside the rule for the whole winter without knowing it. Sixteen states ignore the calendar entirely and read the forecast instead. Two handle it case by case at the commission. Seven publish no winter rule for residential heat at all.
The distinction matters most for the sixteen certification states, because that is where the gap between what a reader believes and what the rule says does real damage. The protection is there. It is simply not automatic.
Protection filed for16 states
The protection is granted to a household that files for it, so the filing, not the calendar, is what switches it on.
Temperature trigger16 states
There is no season. The protection turns on when the forecast crosses a stated temperature and lapses when the forecast passes.
Calendar window9 states
The rule runs between two calendar dates, and inside them the protection applies on its own.
No winter rule7 states
The state sets no winter specific rule. What a household has instead is the payment plan rule and the commission complaint line.
Reviewed case by case2 states
The commission sets no window and instead requires a winter disconnection to be reviewed before it happens.
The mast on the roof and the meter under it, on an ordinary house in Washington State. This is where an electric disconnection physically happens, and it is also why the rules are written by a public utility commission rather than a legislature in a good many states: the commission regulates the company that owns this wire. “Residence service drop”, Chetvorno, CC0
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The trap
The 18 states where nothing happens until the household acts
In each of these the rule is real and the protection is worth having, and in each of them it begins on the day the household does the thing in the last column rather than on the day the season changes. Several of these states also publish dates, which is what makes them easy to misread: the dates are the outer edge of a protection that switches on when the paper is filed.
States where the protection does not arrive on its own. The last column is what the household has to do first.
The 32 degree bar is automatic, but the November to March gas moratorium is not: the customer must tell the gas utility before the shutoff date that they are approved for SNAP, WIC, the Transitional Employment Assistance Program, Medicaid or LIHEAP, send written proof within fourteen days, sign a Suspension Moratorium Agreement with a minimum monthly payment, and sign a delayed payment agreement repaying the deferred amount in seven installments from April through October.
The household has to get a financial hardship or medical protection designation put on its account by contacting its utility or a Community Action Agency with proof of income or proof that it receives a qualifying benefit, and renew that designation each year with fresh documentation in October.
The rule also names a written agreement to pay the past due balance in equal installments starting after March 15 and to pay current bills by their due date.
Declare to the utility that the household cannot pay its bill in full and that someone in the primary household is a child of 18 or younger, a person 62 or older, or a person whose physical health or safety would be seriously impaired by losing service; establishing a Winter Payment Plan before November 1 extends the protection back to November.
The household enrolls in LIHEAP or the Percentage of Income Payment Plan, or falls into one of the named groups the Commission lists, and a household that is none of those asks its utility for a deferred payment arrangement.
The household submits an Energy Assistance Program application, and the protection starts on submission, so the household tells its utility that an application is in when a disconnection is scheduled.
The household has to apply for energy assistance or weatherization through its local community action agency and be certified eligible to the utility before the service is shut off, and tell the utility it has applied; once service is off, approval for energy assistance will not by itself bring it back.
The customer has to call the utility and make pay arrangements, either the Cold Weather Rule plan of one twelfth of the overdue amount plus one twelfth of the current bill plus fees and deposit with the rest spread over eleven months, or a faster negotiated plan.
The household gets a certificate of need from the Cabinet for Health and Family Services or its designee, presents it to the utility inside the ten day termination notice period, makes a payment reflecting its ability to pay, and agrees to a repayment plan that brings the account current by October 15.
Contact the utility and enter a payment arrangement; the Commission's Consumer Assistance and Safety Division weighs the household's cooperation and ability to pay when a utility asks permission to disconnect.
Nothing is required to get the November to March review, but a MEAP eligible household that signs up for the Utility Service Protection Program gets a stronger protection: budget billing all year, no winter turn off while the payments are made, and reconnection without a fee or deposit between November 1 and March 31.
The household tells the company it has a financial hardship and that the service heats the home, then fills out and returns the financial hardship form the company sends, within seven days of receiving it.
The household enrolls with its own utility company, provides proof that it meets the income test or receives a qualifying benefit, shows it applied for state or federal heating assistance, and keeps paying at least 7 percent of the estimated annual bill each month during the protection period.
The household has to show the utility that its income is at or below 50 percent of the state median income, by signed statement, by documents, or automatically by receiving energy assistance, and then enter into and keep up reasonably timely payments under a payment agreement with the utility.
The customer tells the utility they cannot pay because of extreme financial difficulty, delivers a copy of the most recent bill with a signed statement certifying that difficulty, clears everything billed before November 11th, and signs a payment plan at 133 percent of the levelized bill.
Nothing is required for the cold day protection itself, but the flat November to March shield for a registered low income elderly or low income disabled customer requires registering with the utility, entering a cold weather rule payment plan, making the initial payment and keeping the payments up.
Tell the utility before the shutoff date that the household qualifies, meaning income at or below the federal poverty guideline, a public assistance program, a member 62 or older, or a member who is handicapped, and expect the utility to ask for documentation.
The household has to be certified eligible for low income home energy assistance, tell the gas utility, and give the utility acceptable documentation of that eligibility within a reasonable time.
A household claiming financial hardship must give the utility evidence of that hardship once a year, and the winter payment arrangement terms then apply.
The household has to ask its utility for Winter Termination Program protection, and a household that is not on one of the listed benefit programs may self certify to the utility or to the Board's Division of Customer Assistance that it cannot pay because of something outside its control.
The utility has to receive notice that the household meets the qualifications of LIHEAP for the current heating season, and the household has to have no past due charges on November 15 or stay current on a settlement or installment agreement covering what was owed then.
Nothing is required to get the cold weather review itself, but a household where every adult is 62 or older, blind or disabled should tell the utility so the account is coded for the extra protection, and a doctor or the local board of health has to certify a medical emergency for the 30 day hold.
Establish to the utility that a household member is handicapped or 65 or older, that the customer cannot pay the bill in full or on the rule's installment terms, and that the local social service office has certified the household eligible for energy crisis assistance whether or not funds are available.
Nothing happens on its own: the household has to contact its utility and ask to use the Special Reconnect Order, pay up to 175 dollars plus a reconnection charge of no more than 36 dollars, and go onto an extended payment plan for whatever is still owed, or else ask for the winter one third payment plan.
The utility has to check household size and income against its own records before it can shut anyone off in winter, so a household whose income is not on file should give the utility that information when a termination notice arrives.
Protection is automatic for a small balance, but the wider protection needs the utility to hold written verification that someone in the home is a protected status customer, which means unemployed, elderly or handicapped, seriously ill, receiving LIHEAP, or living with a child under two in a household with financial hardship.
Give the utility, at least three days before the shutoff or to the crew at the door, a certificate on the utility's own form signed by a licensed physician saying termination would be especially dangerous to the health of the customer or a household member, signed also by the customer stating that the customer cannot pay by installments.
The protection itself is automatic once the county is in an extreme weather emergency, but the deferred payment plan for bills that come due during the emergency is offered on the customer's request.
The household applies for the moratorium at its local HEAT office, has to already hold a termination notice or have been refused service, has to have applied for HEAT, and then has to make and keep a payment plan through the winter.
Nothing is required for the 10 degree rule, but the 32 degree rule for a household with a member 62 or older applies only if the account holder gives the utility advance written notice and, if asked, reasonable proof.
Tell the utility it cannot pay, ideally within five business days of the delinquency notice, self certify household income to a state low income energy assistance grantee, apply for energy assistance and for weatherization, and keep a winter payment plan of seven percent of monthly income plus one twelfth of the arrears, with the whole balance paid by the following October 15.
The dates
Every state that publishes a winter window
33 states print at least one date. The fourth column is the part a date table usually leaves off, and it is the part that decides whether the dates apply to a given household on their own.
Every state that publishes two dates, earliest start first. The kind column is the part a date table usually leaves out.
Sixteen states read the forecast instead of the calendar
A cold weather rule of this kind protects a household on a cold day in April and does nothing for them on a mild one in January. The thresholds run from the low twenties to the mid thirties, and the fine print differs more than the number does: some states read the forecast high, some the forecast low, some the reading at eight in the morning at a named airport, and some look forward twenty four hours while others look forward seventy two.
Coldest threshold last. Each rule is the state’s own, shortened.
no shutoff on a day when the National Weather Service reading at 8 in the morning, taken at an airport in the same county, is 35 degrees Fahrenheit or lower
During the Cold Weather Rule season the utility may not disconnect when the forecast is below 35F at any point in the next 48 hours, and it may restart the disconnection process once a 48 hour forecast stays above 35F
A utility may not terminate residential service during any period for which the National Weather Service forecast for the customer's service address includes temperatures that do not exceed 32F, and for gas the utility may instead have adopted the option that stops termination during a National Weather Service winter weather advisory
no electric or gas suspension on a day when the National Weather Service forecast for the customer's weather zone predicts 32F or lower at any time in the next 24 hours; this bar applies all year, not only in winter
Disconnection is barred on any day when the National Weather Service local forecast issued between 6:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m. predicts 32F or lower at any time in the next 24 hours.
between November 15 and March 15, an electric utility may not disconnect when the forecasted local low for the 24 hour period beginning at 8:00 A.M. on the proposed disconnection date is below 32 degrees Fahrenheit; the residential gas rule uses the same threshold over a 48 hour forecast period
no residential disconnection in a parish on a day when the previous day's high did not get above 32F and the nearest National Weather Service report predicts the temperature will stay at or below 32F for the next 24 hours
no shutoff on a day when the National Weather Service local forecast issued between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m. predicts the temperature will drop below 32 degrees in the next 72 hours, or on a day when the utility will have nobody available to reconnect during a coming cold stretch
A utility must suspend a scheduled shut off if the National Weather Service local forecast pulled between 6:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. on the day of the shut off predicts the temperature will drop below 32F at any time in the next 24 hours, and the protection only reaches service used for heating.
Between November 1 and April 30 the protection turns on when the National Weather Service, or a similar service the utility has designated, forecasts a temperature of 32 degrees Fahrenheit or below or issues a winter storm warning; the utility must stop disconnecting 24 hours before that forecast event and may not resume for 48 hours after it ends.
Protection turns on day by day and county by county: on a day when the previous day's high did not exceed 32F and the National Weather Service forecast keeps the temperature at or below that for the next 24 hours anywhere in the county, that county is in an extreme weather emergency and disconnection for nonpayment is barred there.
A regulated electric or gas utility may not disconnect a residence for nonpayment when the National Weather Service forecast low for that location is at or below 32F within the 24 hours after the scheduled disconnection; the same section also bars disconnection on Fridays, weekends, state holidays and the day before a state holiday.
service may not be shut off on any day the National Weather Service predicts the temperature to be 32 degrees or colder at or near the service location, and never on a Friday, Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday
The utility may not shut a residential customer off for nonpayment when the National Weather Service or another reputable source forecasts the temperature below 32F within the next 48 hours, or when conditions are otherwise especially dangerous to health; the same rule bars a nonpayment shutoff on a legal holiday or the day before and from December 24 through January 2, and during the cold weather period of November 1 through April 30 the utility must reach the customer in person or by telephone before it disconnects.
The utility must postpone a nonpayment shutoff that would fall inside a forecasted period of extreme temperature, meaning any 24 hours for which the National Weather Service predicts the outside temperature will reach the level the rule sets for that customer: 20 degrees Fahrenheit or lower for an electric customer whose household includes someone elderly or someone with a disability, 15 degrees Fahrenheit or lower for any other electric customer, and 15 degrees Fahrenheit or lower for every gas customer. The same rule sets high temperature thresholds for the cooling season.
During the November 1 through March 31 winter period a gas or electric utility must check the National Weather Service forecast for the Burlington area before any disconnection, and may not disconnect when the temperature is forecast to fall below 10 degrees Fahrenheit during the 48 hours starting between 7 and 10 in the morning of the planned shutoff date; the threshold is 32 degrees Fahrenheit for a household with a member aged 62 or older that has given the utility advance written notice.
A gas meter, which is the other half of the question and frequently the other half of the answer. A state rule can reach a regulated gas company and not reach the electric cooperative next door, or the reverse, so the protection you have often depends on which company sends which bill. “Gas meter”, RadRafe, Public domain
Who it reaches
Whether the rule covers a co-op or a city utility
A public utilities commission writes rules for the companies it regulates, which in most states means the investor owned electric and gas utilities and nobody else. A rural electric cooperative and a municipal light department answer to their own members or their own city council instead, and in 32 states the commission’s winter rule does not reach them. 8 states write it wider. If the bill arrives from a cooperative or from the town, that distinction decides the answer before any date does.
The states whose rule reaches a municipal system or a rural cooperative as well as the investor owned utilities the commission regulates.
No, and the ones that do are not doing the same thing. Of the 50 states compiled here, 9 protect by calendar window, and 41 use some other mechanism: a forecast temperature, a protection a household files for, a review before the fact, or no winter specific rule at all.
It is a rule from a state's utility commission barring a utility from disconnecting residential heating service during the heating season. The most common shape across these states is the protection filed for, at 16 states. The rule binds the utilities the commission regulates, which is not every utility in a state.
18 of the 50 states here grant the protection on a filing or a review rather than automatically, and 31 spell out something the household itself has to do. In those states the calendar alone does not cover an account, which is the single most consequential difference between the fifty states.
Usually not. 32 of these states write the rule to bind the utilities the commission regulates, and 8 extend it to municipal systems and cooperatives as well. A household on a co-op falls under that system's own policy instead.
The forecast, in the temperature states: the bar applies while the National Weather Service forecast is at or below a stated figure and lapses when it is not. In the filing states it is the household's own application. In the states with no winter rule it is the year round payment plan rule and the commission complaint line.
Each one is a state utility commission rule or a statute, read off the commission's own site or the state's own code server. 43 of the 50 records carry the rule or statute number, and every state page quotes the sentence the protection rests on and links the document it is printed in.
Yes. Every state runs an energy assistance program under its own name, with its own opening date, income test and front door, and in several states receiving that assistance is also what switches the disconnection protection on. The heating assistance pages carry the program side.
Where it ends up. Delivered fuels, including the oil and the propane that feed a great many radiators like this one, sit outside almost every state moratorium, because the rules reach regulated utilities and a fuel dealer is not one. “Steam Radiator”, sunfishtommy, CC BY-SA 3.0
Fifty states read September 23, 2026 from each state’s own public utilities commission, consumer division or statute, linked on every state page. Rules change between seasons and a commission can order a company to do something its published rule does not require, so the agency page linked on each state is the one that governs.
