'A vicious cycle': N.S. non-profits say demand for help with power bills is through the roof

In her work as a household navigator for a non-profit on Nova Scotia's South Shore, Elyse Leefe sees clients who live with no electricity for months because they can't afford to pay their arrears.

She sees people who can't keep shared custody of their children because they have no power, or who don't turn on lights or electric heat all year in a desperate attempt to keep their bills affordable. 

"We provide as much support as we can to help them get reconnected and on a budget plan that they can sustain over the long term because that's the ideal goal," Leefe said in a recent interview. 

"But I mean, if the cost is still rising, in the end they're just going to be behind again, and it's just a vicious cycle."

A Nova Scotia Power rate increase of 6.5 per cent came into effect Jan. 1, and low-income customers are feeling the effects as they grapple with the rising cost of living.

Leefe said her organization, the South Shore Open Doors Association in Bridgewater, is seeing more people who need help with power bills and higher arrears than in years past. 

Community organizations across the province are echoing this, with their own data painting a bleak picture. 

Adsum for Women and Children in Halifax provided data to CBC News that shows in the first four months of this year, it has given more money to clients to help with power arrears to prevent disconnection than throughout the entire year last year. 

The organization, which receives funding from the province and from its own fundraising efforts, spent $21,221 on power arrears in 2023. This year, it has already provided $25,849 to clients for power arrears. 

Erin Austin, Adsum's diversion manager, said it's not just power bills. People are struggling to pay their rent and their grocery bills, and often have to choose between them.

"It's just the cost of living is so high," Austin said. "So it's not just one cost going up, but it's all three. And all three are basic needs, so when all of them are inflated, there's a problem because it isn't sustainable."

Nova Scotia Power said the amount of power disconnections across the province in 2023 was just above the average of 3,000 households annually.

A spokesperson said the utility doesn't disconnect power through the winter months, and started disconnections again in May. In the first two weeks of the month, 137 people had their power disconnected. 

"This only happens after several months of reminders, notices and attempts to work with the customer," said spokesperson Hannah Langille.