Some like it hot, but nobody likes a high bill.

While New England utility customers are accustomed to high winter heating costs, high cooling costs in the summer are becoming more common as the hottest months of the year seem to begin earlier and linger longer.

“For electricity, I’d say I average about $200 a month right now,” Christian Cullen told Boston 25 News as he walked through the Boston Common amid this weekend’s hot temperatures. “It’s pretty solid in the Spring and Fall, but Winter and Summer are where you really see your extremes.”

The National Energy Assistance Directors Association (NEADA) predicts the summertime extremes will continue to drive energy bills in the Northeast higher in the years ahead.

“Families think about June, July, and August,” says Mark Wolfe, Executive Director of NEADA. “But the cooling season is getting longer in New England, maybe through September… So the cost of summer cooling is becoming a more important part of the family’s budget than ever before.”

NEADA is urging Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and 26 other states to adopt laws that would prohibit utilities from shutting off power during the hottest months of the year if a customer is behind on their bill.

New England states already have similar regulations in place for the winter months.

“These periods of extreme heat are relatively new,” Wolfe says. “In the past, Massachusetts might have a day or two of extreme heat, but not a week. So what we’re saying to states… is to think through how you set the rules to help protect families during periods when temperatures are really high.”

NEADA is also pushing for additional funding at the state and federal levels to help offset energy costs for income-qualified families. The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP, is one such program.

But Wolfe says more is needed. Last week, his organization sent a letter to FEMA asking for extreme heat events to be declared major disasters. Doing so would free up federal funds for affected regions, just like after hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, and wildfires. Wolfe says those funds could be used to offset energy costs.

“FEMA has an important role to play to help lower-income and middle-income families get through these difficult periods,” Wolfe says. “These are not one-offs. This is the long-term.”

A spokesperson for Eversource says energy usage increases by about 40% during the summer months as air conditioners and fans work overtime to keep homes cool.  As of August 1, Eversource has adjusted its basic service rate. The utility says customers should see both savings and more stable bills between the summer and winter months as a result.

For customers looking for more immediate savings, National Grid suggests starting with your thermostat. By raising your air conditioner’s temperature from 75° to 78°, the utility says customers can save around 18% on their bill.

Additional savings can be achieved by changing out dirty air filters, keeping blinds and curtains closed during the day, and limiting the use of heat-generating appliances, such as a stove top or oven.

Most utilities also offer budget payment plans, which can provide customers with a stable and predictable monthly payment for up to a year, taking some of the surprise out of those high summer and winter bills.

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“Every Sunday, when we gather together with long-time members and newcomers alike, we are welcomed with this phrase: ‘No matter who you are, or where you are in your journey of life and faith, you are welcome here,” the Rev. Michele Bagby Allan, pastor at First Congregational Church Norwood, wrote Friday afternoon in a Facebook post.

Last Sunday, worshippers at a morning service in Norwood discovered welcome flags with rainbow designs had been yanked down, multi-colored Adirondack chairs symbolizing the church’s support for the LGBTQ community had been rearranged, and a rainbow banner reading “Be the Church” had been covered with a black banner, her post said.

Similar scenes unfolded at Christ Lutheran Church and First Congregational Church of Natick, First Congregational Church of Sharon, and St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Framingham, according to the Massachusetts Council of Churches.

At the churches in Sharon and Natick, vandals left a Christian flag and banner reading, “Jesus is King,” according to public statements by the congregation’s religious leaders.

At St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Framingham, a Pride flag displayed outside the sanctuary was removed and replaced with a Christian flag, the Rev. Susan F. Sprowls, the interim rector, said Saturday in an email. A two-page flyer of material offering a “narrow, anti-LGBTQ+ view of scripture passages” was left at the church’s welcome banner, Sprowls wrote.

“We replaced the Pride flag immediately to reflect that St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church remains steadfast in its commitment to proclaiming the love of God for ALL people,” she said.

In Natick, people gathered Thursday evening outside the First Congregational Church to show support for the LGBTQ community, according to the church’s website.

On Friday, the Massachusetts Council of Churches and several other local religious leaders published letters calling attention to the crimes, offering prayers to people who were harmed and the perpetrators, and vowing continued support for the LGBTQ community.

“Sadly, the persons responsible for these attacks left materials indicating they were done in the name of Christ,” said a letter signed by leaders of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, Southern New England Conference of The United Church of Christ, and New England Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.

“In response, we declare our unequivocal and unwavering commitment to living out Christ’s welcome to people of every sexual orientation and gender identity and celebrating their full participation and inclusion in our denominations,” they wrote.

Their letter said they have been working with the FBI and local authorities. On Saturday, a FBI spokesperson declined to comment, and messages seeking comment from police in Framingham, Natick, and Norwood weren’t returned. A Sharon police official said no one was available Saturday to comment.

The ADL’s Center on Extremism and GLAAD, a leading advocacy organization for the LGBTQ community, has been tracking a “rising number of attacks against affirming religious institutions.”

In February, the organizations published findings documenting at least 66 incidents nationwide in which religious institutions were targeted over “their perceived support for and inclusion of LGBTQ people.”

The incidents occurred between June 2022 and January of this year, and included vandalism at First Baptist Church in Jamaica Plain.

Last June, the church on Centre Street was defaced with graffiti that said members of the LGBTQ community “should die.” The phrase, “God does not love you,” was written on the base of the steeple area, the Rev. Ashlee Wiest-Laird told the Globe last year.

About three months later, the doors at Tabernacle Congregational Church in Salem were vandalized with anti-LGBTQ graffiti and other symbols of gay pride were defaced in the city.

Police arrested Mohammed S. Rajab, 26, of Beverly, and filed vandalism and hate crime charges against him. The case is pending and Rajab has pleaded not guilty, court records show.

Between July 2022 and last November, there were 38 anti-LGBTQ incidents in Massachusetts, including instances of harassment, vandalism, and an assault, according to ADL data. More than two-thirds of the incidents were harassment, the figures show.

In a statement on its website, First Congregational Church of Sharon said it is reaffirming its commitment to being a “welcoming, open, affirming, and loving church to all people.”

“We will not be bullied into changing who we are and what we believe,” the statement said. “And now more than ever, we will continue to proclaim the Good News of God’s unconditional love for all people, which we see reflected in God’s Rainbow.”

Laura Crimaldi can be reached at laura.crimaldi@globe.com. Follow her @lauracrimaldi.