20 million households behind on utility bills; owe $19.5 billion

COLUMBIA, S.C. (CNN)—Millions of Americans are struggling to pay their energy bills.

According to the National Energy Assistance Directors Association, nearly 20 million households were behind on utility payments as of March.

They owe a total of $19.5 billion.

That’s about $4 billion higher than a year ago.

And the high cost of cooling homes during the summer is expected to make the problem worse.