Washington, DC – Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton joined a bipartisan coalition of her colleagues in urging the Senate Budget Committee to provide the authorized $5.1 billion for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) in the fiscal year 2009 budget resolution. In a letter delivered to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Budget Committee today, the lawmakers stated that with many families expecting to pay 37 percent more to heat their homes this winter, including the authorized $5.1 billion for LIHEAP is critical in ensuring that they will be able to cope with these soaring energy costs. The group also pressed their concerns that the President’s FY09 budget would cut LIHEAP funding by more than half a billion dollars over the previous year, and that these cuts may force states to either lower benefit amounts, or assist less people; possibly dropping many as 1.2 million households from the program.
“As energy prices have continued to soar higher and higher, increasing the financial burden on working families in New York and throughout the country, the President’s FY09 budget has actually taken a step backward with a drastic cut in LIHEAP funding,” said Senator Clinton. “We must do all we can to help the hardworking families who are struggling to make ends meet, so that they will not have to make the awful choice of picking between paying for necessities like food, healthcare, or heating their homes. This is why it is important that we work together to ensure that the full $5.1 billion in LIHEAP funding is included in the upcoming budget resolution.”
Last week, the President released $40 million from the LIHEAP contingency fund, $14,045,921 of which will assist low income families in New York. However, as this award represents a small fraction of the $586 million available at the President’s discretion as part of the contingency fund, Senator Clinton called on the President to release the remaining funds to provide needed help to struggling families.
Earlier in 2007, as part of her ongoing efforts to ensure working families receive the resources they need to combat rising heating and energy costs, Senator Clinton called on the President to fully fund LIHEAP at the $5.1 billion authorized by Congress for FY 2009. In December, Senator Clinton wrote to the President requesting that he release the entire LIHEAP contingency fund in anticipation of rising energy costs this winter.
According to the New York State Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA), more information on where to apply for LIHEAP assistance can be obtained by:
A copy of the letter to Senators Conrad and Gregg is attached -
The Honorable Kent Conrad, Chairman
The Honorable Judd Gregg, Ranking Member
Committee on the Budget
United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Chairman Conrad and Ranking Member Gregg:
We are writing urge you to provide the authorized $5.1 billion for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) in your fiscal year 2009 budget resolution.
Many Americans are struggling under the burden of high energy prices. According to the Energy Information Administration, some households can expect to pay as much as 37 percent more to heat their homes during the 2007-2008 winter than during the 2006-2007 winter. LIHEAP protects public health and safety by helping low-income families cope with these high energy costs. In addition, the program helps low-income homeowners weatherize their homes to save energy and lower their energy burden. Weatherization, on average, reduces heating bills by 31 percent and overall energy bills by $200 to $250 per year.
In FY 2008, LIHEAP appropriations totaled $2.57 billion. The President’s FY 2009 budget requests only $2 billion for LIHEAP. This cut will force states to either lower benefit amounts, or assist less people; an estimate by the National Energy Assistance Directors' Association (NEADA) found that as many as 1.2 million households could be dropped from the program. In the face of high energy prices and increasing shut-off rates, funding for LIHEAP should be increased, not decreased.
No family in our nation should be forced to choose between paying an energy bill and putting food on the table for themselves and their children. No senior citizen should have to decide between buying life-saving prescriptions and paying utility bills. For individuals and households that may have to face these difficult choices, LIHEAP makes a real difference in their ability to cope with adverse circumstances.
Your inclusion of $5.1 billion in LIHEAP funding in the fiscal year 2009 budget would help qualified low-income households receive much needed LIHEAP assistance in the coming year. Thank you for considering this request, and we look forward to working with you on this matter.
Sincerely,
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