Independents, GOP, and Dem Leaders Join To Restore Home Energy Assistance Funding

 Republican, Democrat and Independent Senators unite to call for a restoration of funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).

“Winter is approaching and LIHEAP is on the chopping block,” Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) told reporters on Wednesday. “Millions of Americans are facing the prospect of being literally left out in the cold and struggling to pay for liters worth of heat.”

LIHEAP is the federal program that assists low income families and seniors on fixed incomes with their energy bills. Last year Congress provided $4.7 billion for LIHEAP. This year, however, the administration has proposed a 45 percent cut to LIHEAP, which would bring it down to around $2.5 million in 2012.

“These cutbacks are frustrating - in fact beyond frustrating - because they put vulnerable citizens at risk,” Reed deplored. “It does not make sense to cut LIHEAP when people are struggling financially and heating costs are going up.”

“We need to act quickly,” Reed continued, “because winter won’t wait.”

Average expenditures for households that heat with oil or propane are forecasted to be higher this year than any other previous winter, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) cited. Heating prices have increased by 21 percent since LIHEAP was instituted 30 years ago. Prices over the past five years have increased from $2.40 per gallon to as much as $3.80 per gallon.

LIHEAP currently delivers as little as 78 gallons of home heating oil, which is a mere 10 percent of this year’s heating costs.

“78 gallons is a far cry from the 850 gallons required just to make it through a winter,” Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) remarked. “Only in Congress does this sort of math make sense.” 

“This is America and we’re going to do everything we can to make sure that no American goes cold this winter,” Sanders concluded.

Democrats Discuss the Advantages of their Budget

Democratic Senators Kent Conrad (D-ND) and Max Baucus (D-MONT.), Representatives John Spratt (D-SC) and George Miller (D-CA) held a press conference today talking about the Democratic Budget. Sharon Patterson-Stallings, a recipient of the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and Carmen Berkley, a recent graduate from Pittsburgh University and Vice-President of the United States Student Association also joined the Senators and the Representatives to show their support to the Budget. This week, the Senate and the House will be debating the Democrats’ plan to cut taxes for the middle class, create jobs at home and strengthen the economy.

The plan is concentrated on education tax cuts, energy tax cuts, Alternative Minimum Tax relief and infrastructure. The objective is to restore fiscal responsible balance by 2012/2013.

This budget promises to secure both complex domestic society and economic leadership, “where Bush has failed” said Chairman Miller. It also promises to help homeowners, by property tax deduction, not only itemizing it, helps soldiers get houses, helps families with children and helps College graduates with their loans.