Ashley Coles is a single mother of two in North Philadelphia. Her epilepsy has made it impossible for her to work. She conserves energy obsessively. She has tried every payment plan available to her. Her monthly PECO bill is still over $700. She has received repeated shutoff notices.

Juan Peralta, a father of three, spent $3,000 just to keep his family warm this past winter. "It feels like the system is failing us," he said.

They are not alone. Between 2020 and 2025, the average PECO electricity bill in Philadelphia rose by more than a third — even as average household usage went down. Families did everything right. They used less. Their bills went up anyway. PECO responded by posting record profits in 2025 and requesting another rate hike — a request Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro called "pure greed" — before the company backed down under public pressure.

Philadelphia's low-income families already spend a larger share of their income on energy than the national average. Black and Hispanic households bear the heaviest burden of all. And the city's own Built to Last program — which helps families make energy efficiency repairs that would lower their bills — has a multiyear waitlist.

Philadelphia City Council has more power than it has used. The city can intervene in rate cases at the state level. It can use its authority over Philadelphia Gas Works to strengthen shutoff protections for families with children, seniors, and people with medical conditions. It can expand automatic enrollment in utility assistance programs so eligible families don't fall through the cracks. It can fully fund Built to Last and eliminate the waitlist.

The people testifying at City Hall this week are not asking for miracles. They are asking their elected representatives to use the tools they already have.

Sign this petition to demand Philadelphia City Council act urgently to protect Philadelphia families from utility bills they cannot afford.