Massachusetts Moves to Let Towns Ban Retail Choice — A Warning Shot for the Industry

The Massachusetts House passed a bill this week that would allow individual cities and towns to ban residential retail electricity choice within their borders.

What the bill does

Under current Massachusetts law, all residential customers can choose their electricity supplier. This bill would give municipal governments the power to opt their residents out of that choice entirely — effectively banning ESCOs from operating in those towns.

The bill now heads to the Senate.

Why ESCOs should be alarmed

Massachusetts already has one of the most hostile regulatory environments for retail suppliers in the country. The AG’s office has been aggressive on enforcement, and consumer advocates have pushed hard to restrict competitive supply.

This bill takes it further. Instead of regulating ESCOs, it lets towns eliminate them. If it passes the Senate and becomes law, expect a domino effect as anti-ESCO towns rush to pass local bans.

The precedent problem

Here’s what should worry every competitive supplier in the Northeast: if Massachusetts can let towns ban retail choice, what stops New York, Ohio, or Pennsylvania from copying the model?

The ESCO industry has a PR problem. Too many bad actors with deceptive door-to-door sales and rates that consistently beat the utility — in the wrong direction. Every slamming complaint, every overcharge, every misleading mailer makes bills like this easier to pass.

Bottom line: The competitive supply industry needs to clean house before regulators do it for them. Massachusetts is the canary in the coal mine.