[OCT. 3, 2005]
CHICAGO -- With home heating bills expected to
rise this winter, Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich sent a letter to the
Illinois congressional delegation urging them to protect critical
Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program funding during budget
negotiations. He also announced that, starting Sept. 1, vulnerable
households and those currently without home heating due to service
disconnections are able to apply for one-time grants through the
LIHEAP winter program.
"The state of Illinois
provided more energy assistance to its low-income residents last
winter than ever before, in response to rising energy prices and
severe weather conditions, and still there remained unmet need for
assistance. Now, we face the prospect of even higher heating bills
in the winter ahead," the governor wrote. "Without emergency
assistance, low-income seniors and families will again be faced with
difficult choices -- paying for prescription drugs or paying their
electricity bills, buying food or heating their homes. Please
consider the needs of the 300,000 households that will utilize the
winter heating program and protect both the regular program funding
and the emergency contingency fund for LIHEAP. With your help, the
state of Illinois will be better prepared to respond to the needs of
its citizens this winter."
Blagojevich is concerned that the House
Appropriations Committee has approved only $2.006 billion in regular
funds and no emergency contingency funding for the fiscal 2006
LIHEAP program. The Senate Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations
Committee has proposed program funding at $1.883 billion for the
regular program and $300 million for the emergency contingency fund.
This is less than the $2.18 billion in funding approved for last
year's program, which also included an additional $297 million in
emergency funds. This budget shortfall, if approved by Congress,
could have a disastrous effect on vulnerable households, including
seniors, young families and those with health problems worsened by
cold weather.
The Energy Information Administration, which releases official
energy statistics from the U.S. government, stated earlier that
average heating oil prices "will be about 16 percent higher this
winter compared to the 2004-2005 winter."
Through the annual LIHEAP winter program, which is run by the
Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services, heating bill
payments will be made on behalf of seniors, the disabled, families
with very young children, those currently without home heating due
to service disconnections, and people with medical conditions that
would be aggravated by cold.
"We are urging vulnerable households to apply for energy
assistance as soon as they can so they can be as prepared as
possible to handle increased heating costs when the winter season
starts," said Barry Maram, director of the Department of Healthcare
and Family Services. "The grants will provide assistance that will
help a lot of families and vulnerable households in Illinois get
through a tough time."
LIHEAP is a state- and federally funded energy assistance program
that assists households with incomes of up to 150 percent of the
federal poverty level. A single-person household can qualify with a
monthly income of up to $1,196, a two-person household up to $1,604,
and a family of four can earn up to $2,420. Benefits will be paid
directly to the household's appropriate utility.
The energy grant applications will be processed through a network
of 35 local administering agencies around the state. These agencies
are accepting applications on a first-come, first-served basis from
eligible households until funding for the winter heating program is
exhausted. The local administering agencies will start accepting
applications from all income-eligible households on Nov. 1, 2006.
The winter heating program is expected to reach 300,000 households
this winter with an estimated $150 million in state and federal
funding.
This summer approximately 55,648 households received assistance
statewide from the cooling program though LIHEAP. Under the
governor's direction, the Department of Healthcare and Family
Services provided a total of $8,503,187 in direct assistance to
families. The total number served far exceeded the initial estimate
of 40,000 applicants, which indicates that the summer program was a
timely response to the needs of the most vulnerable segments of the
population: the elderly, disabled, and households with children. The
coordinated outreach efforts by the local administering agencies and
LIHEAP staff combined to make the program a great success.
LIHEAP serves as many households as possible while giving
priority to households with the greatest energy burden and
households whose health and safety is threatened.
For a complete listing of LIHEAP's local administrating agencies
and additional information about the grant program, go to
www.liheapillinois.com
or call the toll-free LIHEAP information line at 1 (800) 252-8643.
The text of the governor's letter to the Illinois congressional
delegation follows.
Rod R.
Blagojevich
Governor
September 1, 2005
Illinois Congressional Delegation
United States Congress
Washington, DC
Dear
Member of Congress:
With
home heating bills expected to rise this winter, I urge you to
protect the much needed funding for the Low-Income Home Energy
Assistance Program (LIHEAP) during upcoming budget negotiations.
The
House Appropriations Committee has only approved $2.006 billion in
regular funds and no emergency contingency funding for the FY 2006
LIHEAP program. The Senate Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations
Committee has proposed program funding at $1.883 billion for the
regular program and $300 million for the emergency contingency fund.
This is less than the $2.18 billion in funding approved for the
program in FY 2005, which included $297 million in emergency funds.
These funding shortfalls are alarming considering the Energy
Information Administration projects that heating prices will be
about 16 percent higher this winter compared to the 2004-2005
winter.
The
State of Illinois provided more energy assistance to its low-income
residents last winter than ever before in response to rising energy
prices and severe weather conditions, and still there remained unmet
need for assistance. Now, we face the prospect of even higher
heating bills in the winter ahead.
Without emergency assistance, low-income seniors and families will
again be faced with difficult choices – paying for prescription
drugs or paying their electricity bills, buying food or heating
their homes. Please consider the needs of the 300,000 households
that will utilize the winter heating program and protect both the
regular program funding and the emergency contingency fund for
LIHEAP. With your help, the State of Illinois will be better
prepared to respond the needs of its citizens this winter.
