On Wednesday, March 18, 2026, Congressman Eric Sorensen (IL-17) helped introduce the Energy Bills Relief Act. This legislation would
⇒ help lower families’ monthly utility bills
⇒ ensure that data centers are not passing energy costs to households
⇒ expand access to clean and affordable energy for generations to come.
In 2025, the average Illinois family saw their utility bills go up by $200–an increase of over 15% in one year.
“My neighbors are feeling the pressure, as our utility bills continue to rise in Central and Northwest Illinois. I am proud to help introduce the Energy Bills Relief Act, which will help lower those monthly bills, require data centers to pay for their own energy use, and expand programs that lower the cost of clean energy for working families,” said Congressman Sorensen.
The Energy Bills Relief Act prioritizes consumers and ensures access to low-cost energy for our homes, businesses, and economy. It will accomplish this by
• reinstating tax credits for home and system-wide energy improvements, that were ended by President Trump and Congressional Republicans.
• incentivizing utility companies to save consumers money, by rewarding them for making their systems more efficient, thereby lowering bills.
• providing financial assistance to American families to make sure their power isn’t shut off.
• cracking down on price gouging, so energy companies can’t take advantage of you to boost their profits.
• ensuring that facilities like data centers are paying for their own costs, because it is not fair for their expenses to be pushed onto your household, if one opens in your area.
• giving a voice to the American people, so they can benefit from energy projects in their community.
Electricity rates are surging Nationwide. Millions of households are struggling to pay their rising energy bills. The most effective way to lower utility costs for American households is to expand access to renewable energy–the most reliable and low-cost energy source.
We have the tools to power our cities and communities with abundant, reliable, American-made, clean energy. The missing link between those tools and access to low-cost efficient energy is a consumer-first energy policy.
For too long, U. S. energy policy has boosted the profits of energy producers, at the expense of energy consumers. The Energy Bills Relief Act shifts our focus to lowering costs and increasing reliability for American homes and businesses by deploying more renewable energy. This legislation is firmly rooted in the American values of choice and competition, while prioritizing consumers access to low-cost energy for our homes, businesses, and economy.
The Energy Bills Relief Act is what American families need to see costs go down and reliability go up, and to ensure our electric grid can meet rising demand.