Policy makers and households are concerned about the impact of rising energy prices on low-income households. In a trend starting in the 1970s, low-income households are spending an increasingly disproportionate share of their income on home energy. The burden on a household imposed by energy prices can be analyzed through four factors: energy price, energy consumption, income level, and level of assistance provided to help with the costs of energy. The combination of these factors indicates that the energy burden is continuing to be disproportionately large for the nation's poor. Therefore, policy makers make further efforts to alleviate this burden by modifying energy pricing regulation.