Vermont Business Magazine Today, Representative Peter Welch (D-Vermont) led a coalition of 40 bipartisan members in a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Xavier Becerra, urging HHS to release Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funds as quickly as possible and at the highest level available under the current continuing resolution.
“As state agencies work to prepare their LIHEAP programs for the coming winter, it is crucial that they have the resources they need to assist low-income households and seniors as soon as possible, especially in light of the current public health crisis,” the letter read. “It is essential that low-income households do not have to choose between paying for heat and affording other necessities like food or medicine.”
LIHEAP is the primary federal program providing assistance to low-income households, people with disabilities, veterans, and seniors to help pay their home energy bills. The combined impact of COVID-related financial hardship and increasingly extreme weather conditions due to climate change has made LIHEAP more important than ever. Millions of seniors and low-income households across the United States count on this life-saving program.
Full text of the letter is available here and below.
October 26, 2021
The Honorable Xavier Becerra
Secretary
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
200 Independence Avenue SW
Washington, D.C. 20201
Dear Secretary Becerra,
As House champions for affordable energy assistance, we write to urge the Department of Health and Human Services to release Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funds as quickly and at the highest level possible under the current continuing resolution. With the winter heating season rapidly approaching, we are concerned that funds have yet to be released and the most vulnerable Americans will be impacted.
LIHEAP is the main federal program that helps low-income households and seniors with their energy bills and provides critical assistance during the cold winter and hot summer months. October marks the start of the heating season for many states and low-income families and seniors will be facing additional strains on their household budgets. In addition, millions of low-income families, including seniors, are facing new and severe financial hardship due to COVID, making the assistance provided through LIHEAP more important than ever.
As state agencies work to prepare their LIHEAP programs for the coming winter, it is crucial that they have the resources they need to assist low-income households and seniors as soon as possible, especially in light of the current public health crisis. As such, we request that you quickly release LIHEAP at the highest level possible to allow states to prepare for the upcoming season. It is essential that low-income households do not have to choose between paying for heat and affording other necessities like food or medicine.
We look forward to continuing to work with you on this critical program and thank you for your attention to our concerns and those of our constituents.
Sincerely,
PETER WELCH
Member of Congress
DAVID B. MCKINLEY, P.E.
Member of Congress
JAMES P. MCGOVERN
Member of Congress
ANDREW R. GARBARINO
Member of Congress
GWEN MOORE
Member of Congress
DANNY K. DAVIS
Member of Congress
DEBBIE DINGELL
Member of Congress
ELEANOR HOLMES NORTON
Member of Congress
CHELLIE PINGREE
Member of Congress
BRIAN FITZPATRICK
Member of Congress
GRACE F. NAPOLITANO
Member of Congress
NANETTE DIAZ BARRAGAN
Member of Congress
ALAN LOWENTHAL
Member of Congress
RITCHIE TORRES
Member of Congress
ILHAN OMAR
Member of Congress
ADRIANO ESPAILLAT
Member of Congress
JAKE AUCHINCLOSS
Member of Congress
BENNIE G. THOMPSON
Member of Congress
LUCY MCBATH
Member of Congress
GRACE MENG
Member of Congress
CONNOR LAMB
Member of Congress
KIM SCHRIER, M.D.
Member of Congress
PAUL D. TONKO
Member of Congress
ANN MCLANE KUSTER
Member of Congress
DANIEL T. KILDEE
Member of Congress
RON KIND
Member of Congress
THOMAS R. SUOZZI
Member of Congress
JAMAAL BOWMAN, ED.D
Member of Congress
BRENDAN F. BOYLE
Member of Congress
ANTONIO DELGADO
Member of Congress
CAROLYN B. MALONEY
Member of Congress
JERROLD NADLER
Member of Congress
BRENDA L. LAWRENCE
Member of Congress
HALEY STEVENS
Member of Congress
CHERI BUSTOS
Member of Congress
JARED GOLDEN
Member of Congress
PETER MEIJER
Member of Congress
JIM HIMES
Member of Congress
CHRIS JACOBS
Member of Congress
JOHN KATKO
Member of Congress
ELISE STEFANIK
Member of Congress