Proposal to keep families from being unable to pay for power and gas

Automatic summary, not yet reviewed

1. The bill defines energy poverty as the difficulty of keeping a home at an adequate temperature or having other essential energy services at a fair price, and creates the figure of the vulnerable consumer, whose requirements the Government would set and review each year.
2. It creates a social bonus with a public price for electricity, natural gas and butane, based on household income, with minimum vital consumption levels that vary by household size and season. The cost would be borne by the energy supply companies.
3. It bans cutting off electricity, gas or water for nonpayment during the winter for families that meet the income conditions to be set, or with a report from social services, and requires the Government to draw up a plan against energy poverty.
4. It applies a reduced VAT rate to domestic gas and electricity as basic goods, and requires utility companies to include energy poverty in their corporate social responsibility plans and to publish quarterly data on unpaid bills and supply cutoffs.

Who it affects

• Households with low income or at risk of social exclusion: They would get a social bonus with reduced electricity and gas prices, and their supply could not be cut off in winter for nonpayment.
• Vulnerable consumers: The Government would set each year who they are and what requirements they must meet to guarantee basic supplies.
• Energy supply companies: They would cover the cost of the social bonus, could not cut off supply in winter to protected families, and would have to publish quarterly data on unpaid bills and cutoffs.
• People living in rented homes: A family living in a rented apartment could also apply for the social bonus if they meet the requirements.

Words worth knowing

Bono social (social bonus)

A discount on the electricity or gas bill for households with low income.

Tregua invernal (winter truce)

A period of the year, in this case winter, when supply cannot be cut off for not paying the bill.

IVA reducido (reduced VAT)

A lower rate of value added tax, the tax applied to most purchases.

Consumidor vulnerable (vulnerable consumer)

A person at risk of losing basic home supplies for personal, economic or social reasons.

It summarizes the text as it was introduced. It is written by artificial intelligence and may contain mistakes: the official text is what counts. Read the official text · How we make summaries