*Your electric bill on Long Island moves every month for reasons mostly out of your hands, but there are real programs that put money back in your pocket right now.*
If you own or rent on Long Island you have probably noticed your PSEG bill does not sit still. The Power Supply Charge changes monthly based on energy market prices, and for July 2026 that rate actually dropped to $0.133729 per kilowatt hour, an 11.89% decrease from June. That is welcome news after a winter and spring where rates moved in the other direction.
But do not expect a straight line down. Earlier this year Long Island households saw a 3.39% increase in January followed by a 13.23% Power Supply Charge spike in February, even as the Long Island Power Authority had projected lower bills for 2026. The takeaway for anyone budgeting a household is simple. Do not assume last month's bill tells you much about next month's.
Summer is when usage does the damage, not just the rate. PSEG Long Island's Director of Energy Efficiency Alex Valentino has pointed out that rising temperatures across Long Island mean more air conditioning use, and that drives electric bills higher even when the underlying rate is stable. The fix he recommends is not complicated. Adjusting your thermostat by a couple of degrees when you are out of the house can meaningfully cut consumption, and ENERGY STAR estimates homeowners can save roughly $50 to $100 a year just from thermostat settings and programmable controls.
If managing the thermostat manually is not realistic for your household, PSEG Long Island offers rebates on smart thermostats that can be controlled remotely from a phone through its online marketplace. Specifically, customers with central air can get an $85 rebate for installing a qualifying smart thermostat, and rebates generally cover up to half the purchase price of eligible ENERGY STAR products.
For bigger projects, the incentives go further than a thermostat. PSEG Long Island is offering rebates in 2026 on heat pump water heaters, refrigeration equipment, heating and cooling heat pump devices, and ventilation equipment, with a limit of one electric heat pump water heater rebate per account every five years. If you own a multi family building, rebates for heating and cooling systems can run $4,000 per apartment, or $5,000 in areas designated as Disadvantaged Communities by NYSERDA.
Households that qualify by income have another layer of help. PSEG Long Island's Residential Energy Affordability Partnership Program installs LED bulbs, water conservation devices, door sweeps, attic hatches, water heater blankets and thermostats for free to qualifying customers, and participants also receive a $50 bill credit and a $35 voucher for the online marketplace. Note that as of January 2026 the program no longer covers appliance evaluations for items like refrigerators, window air conditioners, dehumidifiers and air purifiers, so check current terms before you apply.
One more thing worth knowing if you are weighing a heat pump for a Long Island home. Between October and May, Rate 580 gives a 40% discount on delivery charges for usage above 400 kWh per month, which matters most during the heating season when a heat pump runs hardest.
None of this changes what your house is worth, but it does change what it costs to live in day to day, and buyers are paying attention to utility costs more than they used to. If you are weighing a purchase, a sale, or just want to know where your home stands, you can always check your home value at /my-home-value/ or send me your question at /askmuds.