Olver Urges More Funding for Low-Income Energy Assistance Due to Expected Home Heating Prices
Press Release: September 20, 2005
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OLVER URGES MORE FUNDING FOR LOW-INCOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE DUE TO EXPECTED HOME HEATING PRICES
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Congressman John W. Olver (D-1st District) announced today that he is calling for a significant increase in funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) to meet the needs of American families facing skyrocketing home heating costs this winter.
Olver joined a bipartisan coalition in the House of Representatives in signing a letter requesting that LIHEAP funding be increased to $4 billion for fiscal year 2006 to address the expected unprecedented surge in home energy prices that have been exacerbated by Hurricane Katrina. The Sept. 14, 2005 letter to the chairmen and ranking members of the House and Senate subcommittees on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education was signed by 81 lawmakers. [A copy of the letter is available upon request.]
Olver said, "LIHEAP helps keep millions of senior citizens on fixed incomes, working families with children, and persons with disabilities from being forced to choose between heating their homes and putting food on the table. In the richest country in the world no one should have to make that unacceptable choice."
The Energy Policy Act, signed into law in August, authorized $5.1 billion in annual spending for LIHEAP, however the current appropriations being considered for this program falls far short of this level of funding. The House appropriations bill, passed in June, would provide $2.007 billion for LIHEAP for FY06. The Senate bill, which has passed through committee, would provide $2.183 billion for LIHEAP.
The Energy Information Association predicts that residential energy expenditures for fuels this winter will increase by 71 percent for natural gas, 17 percent for electricity, 31 percent for heating oil and 40 percent for propane compared to last year.
Olver is also pushing for additional emergency funding for LIHEAP. Olver joined more than 50 members of Congress in sending a Sept. 8, 2005 letter urging President Bush to provide $900 million in emergency LIHEAP funds as part of emergency supplemental funding in response to Hurricane Katrina and the expected surge in energy costs.
"LIHEAP is a vital safety net that reduces the percentage of income spent on residential energy costs while providing modest, but important relief," Olver said.
Olver is a member of the Appropriations Committee and the senior Democrat on the Subcommittee of Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development, Judiciary and District of Columbia.
http://www.house.gov/olver/news/pr050920.html