Low income hurt for heating help, agency says

Todd Dorman
The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier (IA)
July 22, 2003


DES MOINES --- Faced with a looming fuel price jump and a possible slice in federal funding, the chief of Iowa's low-income heating assistance program is bracing for a tough winter.

Jerry McKim said scores of needy families are already swimming in a sea of unpaid bills. According to a June report issued by the state's private, rate-regulated utilities, households eligible for heating help last winter still owe $3 million in past-due payments, a 53 percent increase over the same month in 2002.

Utilities also sent out disconnect warnings to 13,189 of those households last month, a 153 percent increase. Last winter, the federally funded Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP, served more than 77,000 households in Iowa.

"It's going to be a hard, hard winter for a lot of vulnerable Iowa families,'' said McKim, who oversees the program. Households with income below 150 percent of the federal poverty threshold --- about $27,600 for a family of four --- are eligible for assistance.

Last year, households received an average of $310. And nearly two-thirds reported incomes below the poverty line, or $18,400 for a family of four.

Locally, about 4,900 families were assisted through the LIHEAP program, said Michelle Calderwood, the community services supervisor for Operation Threshold. She added that another 400 families sought help from the crisis assistance fund to keep from having their utilities disconnected.

"It's almost horrifying to think about because the families we are dealing with can't keep up with the bills they have now," she said. "When you hear about the bills possibly doubling, we don't have the answers when people ask what to do. Especially when people with seemingly stable jobs are asking the same question. Some of these people's utility bills will exceed their income for one month."

Higher fuel prices are expected to make this winter harsher for those families, regardless of what Mother Nature unleashes, McKim said. Analysts blame low natural gas and propane inventories for an expected spike in wintertime prices.

"We're pretty sure you'll pay more. We're just not sure how much more,'' said Jennifer Moehlmann, an energy data analyst with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. She said the state would issue its winter fuel price forecast by the end of this week.

Utilities representatives are still hesitant to say how high bills could rise this winter.

"It's true, prices are substantially higher compared to what was available a year ago at this time," said Betty Zeman, a Cedar Falls Utilities marketing manager. "If I had to predict today, I would say people will be paying more. ... But, things can change quickly, so it's a little early
to make a firm prediction that a bill will be X amount higher than last year."

Moehlmann said propane prices actually dropped a penny per gallon between June and July. But July's average price of 94 cents is 17 cents higher than the average price recorded a year ago.

Moehlmann encouraged propane customers who fear higher costs to lock in current prices.
"Get your contract signed now,'' she said.

McKim is heeding that advice. The state is sending out $2.5 million to local community action agencies so those organizations can sign propane contracts on behalf of low-income clients. Last winter, just more than 12 percent of LIHEAP recipients used propane.

Although state law bars gas and electric utilities from disconnecting customers between November and March, propane customers aren't shielded.

"If you're living in rural Iowa and your tank goes dry, you're disconnected,'' McKim said.

McKim is also closely watching Congress to see what happens to LIHEAP funding. Last winter, Iowa's program received $35.4 million from a $2 billion pool of dollars nationwide.
President Bush has proposed a $1.8 billion LIHEAP budget with another $200 million in emergency funds that could be released later by presidential order. But a House budget plan would cut regular funding to $1.7 billion with $100 million in emergency reserves.

Under the House plan, Iowa's share would be cut by more than $1.7 million. However, a plan backed by Republicans in the Senate would provide $2 billion in regular funding with no reserve dollars, a move that would hike Iowa's piece of the pie by nearly $1.1 million.

"Even at that level, our dollars won't go as far,'' McKim said.