This draft is designed to be formal, compelling, and actionable. It incorporates the specific details of the January 2026 Winter Storm and the current restoration challenges faced by Nashville residents.

Petition: Demand Bill Credits for Nashville Residents Following 2026 Winter Storm Outages

To: The Nashville Electric Service (NES) Board of Directors and the Metropolitan Nashville City Council.

The Goal

To secure an automatic, tiered bill credit for all residential customers in Nashville and surrounding service counties who experienced power outages exceeding 48 hours during the winter storm event beginning January 25, 2026.

The Statement of Need

Since the onset of the January 2026 Winter Storm, over 195,000 NES customers have been left in the dark and without heat. As of late January, nearly 100,000 households remain without power as crews battle hundreds of broken poles and extensive ice damage.

While we commend the tireless efforts of the 900+ lineworkers and vegetation teams working in dangerous conditions, the financial and emotional burden placed on Nashville families is unsustainable. Residents are currently facing:

Massive Food Loss: With outages stretching beyond 72 and 96 hours, families have lost hundreds of dollars in perishable groceries and essential medications.

Property Damage: The sustained lack of internal heating has led to widespread reports of burst pipes and secondary water damage.

Health & Safety Risks: Vulnerable populations—including the elderly and those with medical equipment—have been forced into life-threatening cold or the unexpected expense of emergency hotels.

Economic Impact: Many residents have lost wages due to the inability to work from home, compounding the financial strain of the storm.

Our Demand

We, the undersigned residents and customers of Nashville Electric Service, demand that the NES Board of Directors and Metro Council take immediate action to provide financial relief. Specifically, we demand:

Automatic Tiered Bill Credits: A base credit for any outage exceeding 48 hours, with additional daily credits for every subsequent 24-hour period without service.

A "Good Faith" Gesture: These credits should be issued automatically to affected accounts, removing the bureaucratic burden of individual claims from citizens already in crisis.

Transparency and Accountability: A public report from NES on the structural failures that led to such widespread outages and a commitment to infrastructure hardening to prevent a repeat of this catastrophe.

By signing this petition, we remind our representatives that electricity is a necessity, not a luxury, and that the community deserves a utility provider that stands by its customers during the hardest of times.

Signature Section

 

 

 

 

 

This draft is designed to be formal, compelling, and actionable. It incorporates the specific details of the January 2026 Winter Storm and the current restoration challenges faced by Nashville residents.

Petition: Demand Bill Credits for Nashville Residents Following 2026 Winter Storm Outages

To: The Nashville Electric Service (NES) Board of Directors and the Metropolitan Nashville City Council.

The Goal

To secure an automatic, tiered bill credit for all residential customers in Nashville and surrounding service counties who experienced power outages exceeding 48 hours during the winter storm event beginning January 25, 2026.

The Statement of Need

Since the onset of the January 2026 Winter Storm, over 195,000 NES customers have been left in the dark and without heat. As of late January, nearly 100,000 households remain without power as crews battle hundreds of broken poles and extensive ice damage.

While we commend the tireless efforts of the 900+ lineworkers and vegetation teams working in dangerous conditions, the financial and emotional burden placed on Nashville families is unsustainable. Residents are currently facing:

Massive Food Loss: With outages stretching beyond 72 and 96 hours, families have lost hundreds of dollars in perishable groceries and essential medications.

Property Damage: The sustained lack of internal heating has led to widespread reports of burst pipes and secondary water damage.

Health & Safety Risks: Vulnerable populations—including the elderly and those with medical equipment—have been forced into life-threatening cold or the unexpected expense of emergency hotels.

Economic Impact: Many residents have lost wages due to the inability to work from home, compounding the financial strain of the storm.

Our Demand

We, the undersigned residents and customers of Nashville Electric Service, demand that the NES Board of Directors and Metro Council take immediate action to provide financial relief. Specifically, we demand:

Automatic Tiered Bill Credits: A base credit for any outage exceeding 48 hours, with additional daily credits for every subsequent 24-hour period without service.

A "Good Faith" Gesture: These credits should be issued automatically to affected accounts, removing the bureaucratic burden of individual claims from citizens already in crisis.

Transparency and Accountability: A public report from NES on the structural failures that led to such widespread outages and a commitment to infrastructure hardening to prevent a repeat of this catastrophe.

By signing this petition, we remind our representatives that electricity is a necessity, not a luxury, and that the community deserves a utility provider that stands by its customers during the hardest of times.

Signature Section

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Representative Role Email

Angie Henderson Vice Mayor angie.henderson@nashville.gov

Zulfat Suara At-Large zulfat.suara@nashville.gov

Delishia Porterfield At-Large delishia.porterfield@nashville.gov

Quin Evans Segall At-Large quin.evanssegall@nashville.gov

Burkley Allen At-Large burkley.allen@nashville.gov

Olivia Hill At-Large olivia.hill@nashville.gov

 

Here is a professional, high-impact cover letter. It is designed to be firm but respectful, ensuring the recipient understands this isn’t just a complaint, but a formal submission for the official record.

Email Subject & Cover Letter

Subject: FORMAL SUBMISSION: Petition for Residential Bill Credits – January 2026 Winter Storm Outages

To: dfrankenberg@nespower.com

CC: councilmembers@nashville.gov; mayor@nashville.gov

Dear Ms. Frankenberg and the NES Electric Power Board,

Attached to this email, please find a formal petition signed by residents and customers of Nashville Electric Service (NES).

In light of the catastrophic power outages following the January 2026 Winter Storm—which left tens of thousands of households without heat or refrigeration for well over 48 hours—we are formally requesting that the Board of Directors implement a tiered bill credit for all affected residential accounts.

While we recognize the difficulty of the restoration efforts, the financial burden of food loss, property damage, and emergency displacement has fallen solely on the shoulders of the customers. This petition serves as a collective request for NES to share that burden through a "Good Faith" service credit.

I am formally requesting the following:

That this petition and its contents be entered into the official public record for the next meeting of the Electric Power Board.

That the Board provide a written response regarding the feasibility of an automatic credit program for outages exceeding a 48-hour duration.

Information on the procedure for a representative of this petition to speak during the public comment period at the February 26, 2026, board meeting.

We look forward to your prompt response and to a productive dialogue on how NES can better support its customers after this crisis.

Sincerely,

[Your Name]

[Your Address/District]

[Your Phone Number]

Pro-Tip for Maximum Impact:

If you have photos of spoiled food, receipts for hotel stays, or invoices from plumbers (for burst pipes), mention in your email: "We are also prepared to submit an addendum of financial loss statements from affected residents to demonstrate the severity of the economic impact." This usually gets a much faster response from legal departments.

Would you like me to help you draft a short script in case you decide to call your Council Member's office or speak at the board meeting?