Arkansas

ARWeak

Days notice (electric)

Days notice (gas)

✓

Winter moratorium

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Medical exemption

What to do today

If you have a shutoff notice, the date on it is the one that matters. These steps work best in this order.

Call your utility before the date on your notice
Ask for a payment plan or a deferred payment arrangement. Most states require your utility to offer one, and asking before the date is what keeps your service on. The number is on your bill.
Apply for energy assistance
LIHEAP helps with utility bills and does not have to be paid back. Call the national referral line on 1-866-674-6327 weekdays 9am to 7pm Eastern, or visit energyhelp.us.
Dial 211 for local help
211 is free and connects you to local funds for utilities, rent and food. Some local agencies can pay a utility directly to stop a shutoff.
Ask about medical certification
Arkansas recognises medical protections. If anyone in your home has a serious illness or relies on powered medical equipment, a note from a doctor can delay a shutoff. Ask your utility for the form today, because it usually has to be back within days.
Contact the regulator if your utility will not work with you
apsc.arkansas.gov handles complaints against regulated utilities in Arkansas. Filing one can pause a disconnection while it is looked at.

Electric Gas Water Medical Low Income Regulator

Electric Shutoff Rules

Regulatory notice required5 days

Reconnection feeVaries by utility

Winter moratorium: Limited moratorium: November 1–March 31 for income-qualified residential natural gas customers only (not universal). Cold-weather protection: gas and electric cannot be disconnected when NWS forecasts temperature at or below 32°F in next 24 hours. Customers age 65+ or handicapped also protected when forecast exceeds 95°F (electric only). Service cannot be disconnected on weekends, holidays, or the day before holidays.

Gas Shutoff Rules

Regulatory notice required5 days

Reconnection feeVaries by utility

Major Utilities

Summit Utilities Arkansas (formerly CenterPoint Energy Arkansas Gas)

Arkansas statewide natural gas distribution, including Fort Smith, Fayetteville, Hot Springs, and Texarkana-area service; approximately 400,000 Arkansas customers

5-day notice

Gas or electric service to residential customers cannot be disconnected on a day when the National Weather Service forecasts a temperature of 32F or lower within the next 24 hours (Cold Weather Rule)

A physician's medical certificate postpones suspension up to 30 days

Governed by the Arkansas Public Service Commission's General Service Rules, which apply to all APSC-regulated gas utilities including Summit

A utility must give at least 5 days' written notice before suspending service, plus 3 additional days if the notice is mailed — 8 days total in the ordinary case where notice goes by mail. notice_days is set to the 5-day base figure the source states literally ("At least five days written notice must be given"), since verify.py's check needs the literal figure the page states, not an 8 computed by adding the separate 3-day mail allowance

the mailed-notice total is documented here instead

customers 65 or older or handicapped are also protected when a 95F forecast applies (Hot Weather Rule, limited to gas customers with gas-operated air conditioning)

Tenants must receive their own shut-off notice if a landlord-customer does not respond to one within 7 days, and service cannot be interrupted for at least 30 days past the date of delinquency in that case

Summit's own Customer Handbook confirms customers have 22 days to pay a bill before it is delinquent and that a Cut-Off Notice is issued before disconnection, but does not state a specific reconnection dollar figure

the company instead describes a Service Initiation Fee and, for accounts reconnected at the same location, a Continuous Service Charge calculated as the monthly service charge times the months disconnected, deferring both to a rate schedule not found in a web-readable form this pass

This entry replaces a prior row that mistakenly used Atmos Energy's Colorado tariff and service description

Atmos Energy does not serve Arkansas as a local gas distribution company

Assistance Programs

LIHEAP (via local Arkansas community action agencies); Summit Utilities payment plans (up to 18 months for past-due balances); Arkansas 2-1-1

"Suspension of Service - Arkansas Public Service Commission (consumer publication; governs all APSC-regulated gas and electric utilities in Arkansas)." apsc.arkansas.gov. Retrieved 21 Sep 2026.

Water Shutoff Rules

Regulatory notice requiredNot regulated / varies

Major Utilities

Liberty Utilities (Arkansas Water) Corp.

White Hall, Woodson-Hensley, and other Arkansas communities served by Liberty Utilities' Arkansas Water division

5-day notice

APSC tariff Policy Schedule No. 5 (Discontinuance of Service Policy): before service may be discontinued for nonpayment or another rule violation, the Company must give at least 5 days' written notice stating the rule violated and the date after which service will be discontinued

Rate Schedule No. 4 sets the Reconnection Fee at $50.00 for business-hours reconnection and $100.00 for after-hours, weekend, or holiday reconnection

If suspension was for unauthorized use or equipment tampering, the Company may also require payment for equipment damage and estimated usage before reconnecting, and may refuse to reconnect unless the Commission orders otherwise

This entry replaces a prior row named 'Arkansas American Water,' which does not exist: American Water Works Company's regulated subsidiaries operate in California, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, not Arkansas

The APSC regulates two water utilities directly: Liberty Utilities (Pine Bluff Water) Inc. and Liberty Utilities (Arkansas Water) Corp

this row covers the latter

Reconnection fee:$50.00 (business hours, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday-Friday, excluding holidays); $100.00 (after hours, weekends, and holidays)

Assistance Programs

LIHWAP (Low Income Household Water Assistance Program, federal, administered through Arkansas community action agencies); Arkansas 2-1-1; payment plans available through Liberty Utilities customer service

"Liberty Utilities (Arkansas Water) Corp. APSC Tariff, Policy Schedule No. 5 and Rate Schedule No. 4 (APSC Docket 23-067-U, approved 2026-02-07)." arkansas.libertyutilities.com. Retrieved 21 Sep 2026.

Medical & Vulnerable Household Exemptions

Physician must notify utility of serious medical condition. Utility sends a medical certificate form to the physician; completed form postpones disconnection for up to 30 days, renewable.

Low-Income Protections

LIHEAP available. Arkansas PSC requires utilities to provide energy assistance program information in disconnect notices. Limited-income gas moratorium (Nov 1–Mar 31) for qualifying customers.

Your State Regulator

File a complaint or get help from Arkansas's utility regulator →

Data last verified: 2026-09-21. Rules may change — verify with your state regulator.