October 20, 2005
Let’s Not Leave Iowans Out in the Cold
By Senator Tom Harkin
More and more Iowans I talk to are worried about the cost of keeping their homes warm this winter. And people with low incomes—including many seniors on fixed incomes—are downright panicked. With home heating costs expected to rise upwards of 50 percent, they face a harsh choice between staying warm and cutting back on necessities such as medical care and prescription drugs.
Earlier this month, I hosted a roundtable discussion in Hiawatha to highlight the importance of the federal Low-Income Energy Assistance Program – LIHEAP for short. This program has been a godsend for low-income families, people with disabilities, and seniors. Last winter, about 86,000 Iowa households received an average of $317 in LIHEAP assistance. Most years, everyone who applies gets some level of assistance.
But, this year, we are heading for big problems. At the roundtable in Hiawatha, I learned that applications for home heating assistance have skyrocketed by 50 to 70 percent. Dan Mannicia, who runs the Hawkeye Area Community Assistance Program (HACAP) in southeast Iowa, told me that assistance funds are likely to run out in mid-January, “just when it gets really cold.”
Anticipating this huge increase in applications for home heating assistance, I proposed a measure in the Senate to boost LIHEAP funding this winter. It was defeated on a mostly party-line vote, with opponents claiming that “we need to make tough choices.” However, those same elected officials are pushing ahead with $70 billion in new tax cuts, overwhelmingly for high-income Americans.
These choices do not reflect Iowa values and priorities. Earlier this month, a reporter asked the Secretary of Energy, Samuel Bodman, if the administration plans to ask Congress for more funding for LIHEAP, given the big run-up in energy costs. Secretary Bodman answered, “At least at this point in time, that’s not on the agenda.”
LIHEAP may not be on Secretary Bodman’s agenda, but it is on mine. In the coming weeks, when Congress takes up an emergency funding bill to deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, I will again bring up my amendment to provide an emergency increase in funding for LIHEAP. And I will fight with everything I’ve got to pass it.
Bear in mind that when people can’t afford to keep their homes warm, this creates a cascade of problems. Kids get sick more easily. And people make dangerous decisions to cut back on necessities, including food and medicine.
America can do better. We need an emergency boost to LIHEAP funding. And, with winter on our doorstep, there is no time to waste