NH senators ask appropriators for more heating assistance

Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) urged Senate appropriators to increase funding for heating assistance.

In a letter to Chairman Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and ranking member Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies on Monday, Shaheen and Ayotte said funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) has decreased despite the fact that home heating costs have increased.

{mosads}“We are increasingly concerned about the decline in LIHEAP funding as energy costs remain high and the number of eligible households continues to exceed those receiving assistance,” the senators wrote. “This means the average LIHEAP grant now covers just a fraction of average home energy costs, leaving many low-income families and seniors with fewer resources available to meet other basic needs.”

Shaheen and Ayotte said Monday that LIHEAP funding has declined from $5.1 billion in 2010 to $3.4 billion in 2014 — nearly a 30 percent decrease. They said low income households using the grants to pay for their home heating and cooling have also seen their allotment reduced.

“We ask that you take into account the great need for LIHEAP and the devastating impact that cuts to the program could have on low-income families and seniors and restore LIHEAP funding to no less than $4.7 billion,” Shaheen and Ayotte wrote.

Their request comes on the heals of a record-breaking cold winter.