{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.king.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/collins-king-reed-lead-bipartisan-coalition-of-senators-seeking-to-boost-liheap-fuel-assistance-", "Collins, King, Reed Lead Bipartisan Coalition of Senators Seeking to Boost LIHEAP Fuel Assistance", "2014-12-23", "2014", "2014-12", "Independent", "House", "ME", "Angus King", "K000383", "www.king.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Collins, King, Reed Lead Bipartisan Coalition of Senators Seeking to Boost LIHEAP Fuel Assistance \n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\tTuesday, December 23, 2014\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\tWASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013\u00a0In an effort to help provide fuel assistance to households struggling with their winter heating bills, U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), Angus King (I-ME) and Jack Reed (D-RI) are once again leading the effort to restore and increase federal heating assistance to low-income families and seniors to past years\u2019 levels.\r\nCollins and Reed are leading a bipartisan coalition of 43 U.S. Senators, including King, in urging the President to provide Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) at no less than $4.7 billion.\u00a0 Last year, Senators Reed and Collins successfully led the effort, with Sen. King\u2019s support, to increase funding for LIHEAP by $169 million as part of the 2014 Consolidated Appropriations Act, which the President signed into law in January.\u00a0 The (FY) 2015 Omnibus Appropriations Bill passed by Congress this week provides $3.39 billion in LIHEAP funding through September 30, 2015.\r\n   LIHEAP is the main federal program that helps low-income households and seniors with their energy bills, providing vital assistance during both the cold winter and hot summer months. \u00a0LIHEAP households are among the most vulnerable in the country. \u00a0According to the National Energy Assistance Director's Association, more than 90 percent of LIHEAP recipients have at least one household member who is a child, elderly, or disabled, and 20 percent of households include at least one veteran.\r\nThe current funding level is able to serve just 20 percent of the eligible population, and those who receive LIHEAP assistance have seen their average grant reduced by nearly $100 since 2010, from $520 in FY 2010 to $424 in FY 2014.\u00a0 With the average LIHEAP grant estimated to cover less than half of the average home heating costs for a household this winter, many low-income families and seniors will struggle to pay for the basic necessity of home energy and will have fewer resources available to meet other essential needs. \u201cThe LIHEAP program is one of our most effective tools to help senior citizens and less-fortunate households keep warm during the winter,\u201d\u00a0said Senator Collins.\u00a0 \u201cEnergy costs remain high and LIHEAP funding is a vital lifeline that helps prevent people from having to choose between heating their home, paying their bills, or going without food or medicine.\u201d\u00a0\r\n\u201cMaine\u2019s bitterly cold winters present serious challenges for our state\u2019s most vulnerable families, who often end up having to confront the choice of whether to pay the ever-increasing heating bill or provide for everyday necessities,\u201d Senator King said. \u201cI urge the Administration to\u00a0include\u00a0these critical funds, which will help tens of thousands of Mainers to stay warm while still being able to make ends meet.\u201d \u201cFunding for LIHEAP is not keeping up with demand.\u00a0 We are doing everything we can to stretch these federal dollars, but more families are in need and we need to protect them during the cold winter months.\u00a0 We must keep the pressure on this Administration to robustly fund this critical program so that thousands of families can keep their heat on in the winter.\u00a0 We must also continue making smart investments in weatherizing more homes to try to reduce both energy bills and fuel consumption,\u201d\u00a0said Senator Reed, noting that\u00a0LIHEAP helped about 34,000 Rhode Islanders with their energy bills last year. Text of the letter is provided below: President\u00a0   The White House   1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW   Washington, DC 20500 Dear Mr. President,\r\n   We are writing to request that you prioritize the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) in your Fiscal Year (FY) 2016 budget proposal by including no less than $4.7 billion for this program that provides critical support to our most vulnerable citizens. LIHEAP is the main federal program that helps low-income households and seniors with their energy bills, providing vital assistance during both the cold winter and hot summer months. LIHEAP households are among the most vulnerable in the country. According to the National Energy Assistance Director's Association, more than 90 percent of LIHEAP recipients have at least one household member who is a child, elderly, or disabled, and 20 percent of households include at least one veteran. For these households, LIHEAP funding has been a lifeline during challenging economic times. Access to affordable home energy is not a luxury. It is a matter of health and safety. We understand the ongoing discretionary budget challenges. However, we are deeply concerned that the number of households eligible for LIHEAP assistance continues to exceed available funding while the average cost of home heating is expected to remain unaffordable for millions of households nationwide. In fact, the current funding level is able to serve just 20 percent of the eligible population, and those who receive LIHEAP assistance have seen their average grant reduced by nearly $100 since 2010, from $520 in FY 2010 to $424 in FY 2014. Additionally, the purchasing power of LIHEAP has declined in recent years. Since FY 2010, the average LIHEAP grant has fallen from about 60 percent to 44 percent of the cost of home heating. For households using delivered fuels, this decline is even more dramatic, covering just 18 percent of heating oil and propane costs. With the average LIHEAP grant estimated to cover less than half of the average home heating costs for a household this winter, many low-income families and seniors will struggle to pay for the basic necessity of home energy and will have fewer resources available to meet other essential needs. As you finalize your FY 2016 budget request, we ask that you take into account the high demand for LIHEAP assistance. We urge you to reprioritize this program within your FY 2016 budget and restore funding to this program to a level no less than $4.7 billion.   Thank you for your attention to and consideration of this important request. Sincerely, Jack Reed   Susan Collins   Angus King   Sherrod Brown   Kelly Ayotte   Edward Markey   Lisa Murkowski   Bernard Sanders   Sheldon Whitehouse   Tom Udall   Amy Klobuchar   Jeff Merkley   Tammy Baldwin   Richard Blumenthal   Mazie Hirono   Jeanne Shaheen   Al Franken   Kirsten Gillibrand   Carl Levin   Mark Pryor   Mark Begich   Kay Hagan   Robert Casey   John Walsh   Mary Landrieu   John Rockefeller   Chris Coons   Patrick Leahy   Tim Johnson   Joe Manchin   Richard Durbin   Brian Schatz   Elizabeth Warren   Cory Booker   Robert Menendez   Dianne Feinstein   Chris Murphy   Debbie Stabenow   Charles Schumer   Tim Kaine   Ron Wyden   Maria Cantwell   Jon Tester\r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.king.senate.gov/newsroom/press-releases/collins-king-reed-lead-bipartisan-coalition-of-senators-seeking-to-boost-liheap-fuel-assistance-"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.9641950018703938, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}