Why It Matters
Ten Massachusetts communities adopted ordinances banning natural gas hookups in most new construction and major renovations to meet climate goals, yet the state’s two largest utilities have spent roughly $100 million upgrading gas infrastructure in those same towns since the rules took effect. The contradiction highlights a persistent tension between climate policy and utility investment incentives, even as the state aims to cut emissions 85 percent by 2050.
What Happened
Communities including Arlington, Cambridge, Brookline, Northampton, Newton, Concord, Lexington, Lincoln, Aquinnah, and Acton passed “fossil fuel free” ordinances starting in January 2024, prohibiting gas connections in new buildings and major renovations with limited exceptions. The rules were meant to accelerate the transition away from natural gas, which accounts for 36 percent of the state’s emissions.
Since adoption, Eversource and National Grid have invested approximately $100 million in gas system upgrades across nine of the ten communities, with an additional $50 million in spending projected for the current year. The utilities justified the spending primarily as replacements for aging, leaky pipes. Massachusetts gas companies reported 9,000 active leaks statewide at the end of 2024, down from nearly 21,000 a decade earlier.
The investments flow through the Gas System Enhancement Plan, a 2014 program designed to incentivize utilities to reduce methane emissions and replace deteriorating infrastructure. That program accounted for 8 to 11 percent of gas customers’ monthly bills.
David Morgan, an environmental planner for Arlington, noted the town’s climate objectives: “We want to see something that is effective and meets our climate action plan goals.” William Hinkle, an Eversource representative, countered that “customer choice remains a core principle in the Commonwealth.”
By the Numbers
10 — communities that adopted fossil fuel free ordinances
$100 million — total gas infrastructure spending by Eversource and National Grid in nine of the ten communities since ordinance adoption
$50 million — additional gas spending projected in those municipalities for the current year
$814 million — gas company spending through GSEP in 2024
40 percent — increase in GSEP spending from 2023 to 2024
$10.5 million — National Grid investment in Arlington through GSEP in 2024, following the town’s ordinance
$14.3 million — National Grid’s proposed additional spending in Arlington for the current year
21,000 — miles of natural gas pipeline in Massachusetts
The Arlington Case Study
Arlington provides a concrete example of the spending surge. After the town’s ordinance took effect, National Grid spent $10.5 million on gas infrastructure there in 2024 and proposed $14.3 million in additional work for the current year. The utility won approval for one exemption to the ordinance—a brewery project—on grounds of economic hardship.
Zoom Out
Massachusetts has among the nation’s most aggressive climate commitments and was the first state to adopt “fossil fuel free” building codes. However, the state’s regulatory structure for utilities creates misaligned incentives: gas companies earn returns on capital investments in pipeline infrastructure, which can make them financially motivated to expand or upgrade systems even in jurisdictions moving away from fossil fuels.
The State Department of Energy Resources found that new construction and major renovations in fossil fuel free communities were typically more energy efficient than comparable projects elsewhere, suggesting the ordinances are achieving their intended effect on building performance. Yet the continued utility spending on gas networks in those same towns may complicate the transition and create stranded assets if demand for gas service declines as intended.
The Massachusetts Senate has proposed ending the Gas System Enhancement Plan by 2030, a move that could reduce the financial incentive for utilities to upgrade gas infrastructure in the coming years.
What’s Next
The Senate’s proposed phase-out of GSEP by 2030 will face scrutiny in ongoing budget and energy legislation. Utilities are likely to continue seeking rate recovery for infrastructure maintenance in fossil fuel free communities, particularly for leak repairs in aging pipe networks. Climate advocates and utilities will continue negotiating the terms under which gas system upgrades proceed in municipalities moving away from fossil fuels.