5 Cold Weather Rule Protections Missourians Have to Ask For

Your heating bill is behind, it’s November in Missouri, and you figure the Cold Weather Rule has you covered.

Some of it does.

The rest depends on something you have to do first.

Here are the Cold Weather Rule protections Missourians have to ask for.

Note: This is general information, not legal advice. Utility rules are subject to change, so confirm the current rules with the Missouri Public Service Commission.

What the Missouri Cold Weather Rule Covers

The Cold Weather Rule is a Missouri Public Service Commission (PSC) rule that’s in effect from Nov. 1 through March 31.

It applies to natural gas and electric utilities under PSC jurisdiction that provide heat-related service.

Municipally operated systems, cooperatives and propane delivered by truck aren’t under PSC jurisdiction, so the rule doesn’t reach them.

If your heat comes from a city-owned utility, a co-op or a propane truck, this rule doesn’t apply to you.

Check your bill first.

The Shutoff Ban You Don’t Have to Request

The Cold Weather Rule’s freeze test is the main shutoff protection that comes without a phone call.

Before 2025, the PSC’s rule looked ahead only 24 hours.

Senate Bill 4 stretched that to 72 hours, and the PSC amended its rule to match.

A utility is free to protect you at a higher temperature than 32 degrees, too.

Your utility also has to mail you a notice at least 10 days before a proposed shutoff.

It then has to try to reach you again within 96 hours of the cutoff.

No form required.

These winter utility rules cover more of the fine print.

1. Registering as Elderly or Disabled

The Cold Weather Rule counts you as a registered elderly or disabled customer only after your utility has your approved form on file.

Your household qualifies if someone in it is 65 or older.

A physician’s form saying the household needs gas or electric service to maintain life or health also qualifies.

So does a formal award letter for federal disability benefits.

Registered customers get extra notices before a proposed shutoff.

You can list a second person on the form, and that person gets notices too.

The rule says registration should take place by Oct. 1 of each year after your first one.

If October has already passed, call your utility now and ask how to register.

Don’t wait.

2. Telling Your Utility You Can’t Pay in Full

The Cold Weather Rule’s protection against a nonpayment shutoff kicks in after you contact your utility and say you can’t pay your bill in full.

You also have to share income information when the utility asks, make an initial payment and enter a payment agreement.

Your utility has to offer a 12-month budget plan first.

That plan covers what you owe now, your current bills and the utility’s estimate of your coming bills.

Your first payment can’t top 12% of the 12-month budget amount unless you and the utility agree to a different figure.

Keep up with the agreement, and the utility can’t assess a new deposit or bill one it assessed earlier.

Can’t afford the 12-month amount? You can ask for a longer plan, but it takes mutual agreement.

A default is costly.

After a default on a cold weather plan, the initial payment is 80% of your balance unless you and the utility agree to a different amount.

3. Signing the Low-Income Affidavit

The Cold Weather Rule gives registered elderly or disabled customers stronger protection if you also sign an affidavit about your income.

To count as low income, your household's income has to fall below the rule's cutoff.

The rule counts you as low income only with that signed affidavit on file with your utility.

Registered low-income customers who enter a cold weather payment plan and make the initial payment can't be disconnected from Nov. 1 through March 31.

That holds only while you keep paying at least the lesser of 50% of each month's actual bill or the level amount in your plan.

That can mean paying half.

4. Getting an Energy Assistance Pledge Counted

The Cold Weather Rule treats a pledge from Missouri's energy assistance agency as the payment you owe.

That works only if you apply to the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) first.

To apply, you send your completed LIHEAP application to the LIHEAP agency in the county where you live.

A pledge from that agency, in an amount equal to a payment the rule requires, is treated as that payment.

Benefits depend on available funding, so a pledge isn't guaranteed.

The program's winter crisis help requires a disconnect notice, so hold on to the one your utility mails you.

Keep that notice.

5. Enrolling in Gas Budget Billing Early

The Cold Weather Rule lets a natural gas customer, not an electric one, ask to join a budget plan before a disconnect notice ever arrives.

If you aren't disconnected and haven't received a disconnect notice, you can request immediate enrollment in your gas utility's equal payment, budget-billing or similar plan.

You have to agree to make the initial payment the rule sets for payment agreements.

That line sits in the rule's gas utility provisions, so it covers gas utilities, not electric ones.

Once a disconnect notice arrives, this particular right no longer applies.

Enrolling doesn't by itself stop a shutoff, so keep paying the plan.

Ask early.

Reconnection After a Shutoff

The Cold Weather Rule also covers customers whose heat is already off, but you have to ask for reconnection.

To restore your heat, you contact your utility, request reconnection and say you can't pay in full.

You then make an initial payment, enter a payment agreement and share income information if the utility asks.

If you meet those conditions, the utility has to reconnect you without requiring a deposit.

The amount you owe can't come from unauthorized interference with service.

Gas customers can restore service with an initial payment of the lesser of 50% of their past-due balance or $500.

The rule also defers reconnection, trip and collection fees for gas customers.

Ask.

FAQ

When does the Missouri Cold Weather Rule start and end?

The Cold Weather Rule runs from Nov. 1 through March 31 each year.

It applies to natural gas and electric utilities under Public Service Commission jurisdiction.

Does the Missouri Cold Weather Rule apply to co-ops and city utilities?

No.

Municipally operated systems, cooperatives and propane delivered by truck aren't covered.

Can my heat be shut off if it's freezing outside?

Not for nonpayment.

A utility can't disconnect heat when the forecast calls for temperatures below 32 degrees during the following 72 hours.

Who can register as elderly or disabled under the rule?

A household qualifies if someone is 65 or older.

A physician's form or a federal disability award letter also works.

You file a registration form with your utility.

Who do I call if my utility threatens a shutoff?