Healey seeks Massachusetts share of New England utility refunds

Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey is asking Eversource, National Grid and Unitil to begin returning Massachusetts customers’ share of electricity refunds tied to a federal rate order. In a letter dated Oct. 13, 2026, she asked the utilities to provide by Oct. 27 a state-specific accounting, a schedule for returning the money and an explanation of how customers would receive it.

Healey also asked the companies to work with ISO New England and other transmission owners to start making refunds promptly. Her letter is a request, not an order requiring immediate payment, and it does not change the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (FERC) May 20, 2027, deadline for completing the refunds.

The refund pool is estimated at about $1.5 billion for New England ratepayers overall. That is not a confirmed Massachusetts total, and the amount attributable to the state, individual customer refunds and payment dates have not been established.

The FERC rates and refund periods

FERC’s March 19, 2026, Opinion No. 594 set the replacement base return on equity for New England transmission owners at 9.57%, effective as of Oct. 16, 2014. The order also set a maximum return, including incentives, of 12.09%, effective as of the same date. FERC found the prior 11.14% base rate unjust and unreasonable.

The order directed refunds with interest for two periods: Oct. 1, 2011, through Dec. 31, 2012, and Oct. 16, 2014, through March 19, 2026. FERC later extended the refund-payment deadline to May 20, 2027. The regional estimate does not determine what any particular customer will receive.

Utilities describe different processing plans

The utilities have not all said they will accelerate payments. Eversource told WBUR that calculating and processing the refunds involves multiple parties and billing systems, and said it would not sacrifice billing accuracy. National Grid said it was working to calculate refunds and planned to begin processing them in 2027, before FERC’s May deadline. Unitil said it planned to respond to Healey by Oct. 27.

The immediate action Healey requested is information from each utility by Oct. 27: how much of the regional refund is attributable to Massachusetts customers, when the companies expect to return it and how the payments would reach customers. Whether the utilities will issue refunds before FERC’s deadline remains unsettled.