By Carol Clements
National Fuel Funds Networks
March 2005

The old saying goes, “It’s an ill wind that blows no man good.” But if Congress approves a proposed reduction in energy assistance for FY 2006, that saying could be changed to, “It’s a chill wind that blows no man good.”

Amid steadily increasing home energy costs and increased demand for federal energy assistance, any move to reduce funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) would be like turning a cold shoulder to thousands of Americans.

The President’s FY 2006 budget proposes $1.8 billion in funding for the regular LIHEAP program and $200 million in contingency funds. This is a 4.3 percent decrease in regular program funding from the $1.88 billion LIHEAP received in current fiscal year. The $200 million proposed for contingencies represents a 32.8 percent reduction from the FY 2005 total of $297.6 million in emergency funds.

One month ago, I stood on Capitol Hill with seven U.S. Senators and a large group of LIHEAP supporters and called for increasing funding for federal energy assistance to $3.4 billion so that LIHEAP would remain a viable program, providing assistance that keeps pace with the realities of current energy prices.

We asked for increased funding for federal energy assistance because the price of natural gas has tripled in the last five years and heating oil prices reached record highs this winter.

We asked for increased funding for LIHEAP because 5.1 million households are expected toreceive energy assistance this winter, the highest number of Americans receiving aid since the mid-1980s.

We asked for increased funding for this vital program because the current LIHEAP funding level is virtually the same as it was when the program began in 1981, while the Consumer Price Index inflation calculator shows that the cost of living went up 107 percent over the same time period.

We asked for increased funding for LIHEAP because senior citizens, people with disabilities and the working poor are spending 20, 30, and 40 percent of their household incomes on home energy bills, and, for those Americans, the price of home energy has become dangerously unaffordable.

Finally, I asked for increased funding for federal energy assistance because, every day, I see the faces of people in need and know just how important this program is to keeping their homes, their families and their lives together and to providing a stable environment for their children.

Congress should take the chill out of the president’s budget proposal and fund LIHEAP at $3.4 billion or more this coming year. The well being of too many Americans depends on it.

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Carol Clements is the chairperson of the National Fuel Funds Network