US heating bills up, but federal aid down

At least seven states are completely out of assistance money or will be soon.

from the March 9, 2007 edition

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Thursday, the House Appropriations Committee held hearings on the president's HHS budget request, which includes a further reduction of $320 million in LIHEAP funding for fiscal year 2008. The idea is to move more money into a contingency fund, Ms. Robinson says.

But advocates for LIHEAP funding are concerned about the impact of a further reduction in aid. They point out that the number of people using the program is expanding, with some 5.6 million people receiving help this year compared with 5.1 million last year and 4.2 million in 2002.

The 2007 reduction in funding is already straining many state programs. In Delaware, the state has used up the money it had set aside to help low-income people pay for summer air conditioning.

"It can be really dangerous because the elderly won't run their air conditioners because they are afraid they can't pay their bills, and some children with asthma have to have air conditioning," says Leslie Lee, who administers the program.

West Virginia ran out of funds about a month ago, but it just received notice it will get some additional funds, so it will reopen its doors on Monday. But public demand is expected to be so strong that Dan Hartwell, who manages the program, says, "We'll be lucky to get through the end of March."

Jerry McKim, who runs the program for Iowa, has had to use money that he normally uses in the summer to prepurchase propane, when it is less expensive. If the president's 2008 budget request is approved, Iowa's program would have $16 million less for next winter, he says.

"We will have to turn a lot of people away because there is a point where if I gave everyone $100, it would serve no one," Mr. McKim says. "Here, our most vulnerable citizens routinely forgo basic necessities to keep up with utility costs."

Take the Clements family of West Des Moines. At the moment, neither Mary Clements nor her daughter Susan, who has a 3-year-old son, is working. This year, the state reduced their LIHEAP check by about 30 percent to some $320, down from about $450 last year.

The Clements family has felt the pinch. "We've had to not pay other bills, not go out to eat, and not use as much gas for our van," says Mary Clements. "Clothes and shoes for my grandson we just had to postpone. But my mother taught me to pay my bills on time, so I always pay the heating bill."

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