More and more applying for energy assistance
NORWICH – With the prices for gasoline and retail heating oil rising to new heights, many consumers are having to choose between getting to work and paying for heat, food and other household essentials.
Federal energy information analysts are predicting pump prices to peak near $3.50 a gallon in the spring. Retail heating oil prices this winter are already 33.5 percent higher than last year. Those economic stresses, coupled with the threat of rising unemployment in the area, have many in Chenango County finding themselves at the door of social services.
Chenango County’s Department of Social Services reports an influx this winter of first time clients applying for the federal Home Energy Assistance Program. Although residents enjoyed a reprieve in winter weather conditions this week, DSS Welfare Examiner Sharon Sutherland she is concerned about the coming months.
“What’s going to happen next month, or the month after when the weather gets really cold?” the 30-year veteran asked.
The maximum, one-time HEAP payment (depending upon income levels) is $540, with most clients receiving an average of $420. A qualified, emergency allotment of a one-time $600 payment per client payment is also available. Sutherland said many HEAP clients have already applied for and received their emergency checks.
“We are seeing more new people because of the price of fuel. And the regular HEAP payment just isn’t cutting it. About $420 might be their regular support, on average, but it’s not enough for a minimum delivery of oil,” Sutherland said.
There were 2,045 straight HEAP clients in 2006, meaning they were not also receiving food stamps or cash assistance. Exact numbers for this year so far were unavailable.
“People are finding themselves in dire straights when it comes to paying for fuel oil or getting to work,” said Janice Burt-Ashton, the county’s deputy director of social services.
Jane Coddington, director of Chenango County Catholic Charities, said her office had also been “hearing stories about people having to making a choice between food on the table or gasoline.”
Federal energy information analysts are predicting pump prices to peak near $3.50 a gallon in the spring. Retail heating oil prices this winter are already 33.5 percent higher than last year. Those economic stresses, coupled with the threat of rising unemployment in the area, have many in Chenango County finding themselves at the door of social services.
Chenango County’s Department of Social Services reports an influx this winter of first time clients applying for the federal Home Energy Assistance Program. Although residents enjoyed a reprieve in winter weather conditions this week, DSS Welfare Examiner Sharon Sutherland she is concerned about the coming months.
“What’s going to happen next month, or the month after when the weather gets really cold?” the 30-year veteran asked.
The maximum, one-time HEAP payment (depending upon income levels) is $540, with most clients receiving an average of $420. A qualified, emergency allotment of a one-time $600 payment per client payment is also available. Sutherland said many HEAP clients have already applied for and received their emergency checks.
“We are seeing more new people because of the price of fuel. And the regular HEAP payment just isn’t cutting it. About $420 might be their regular support, on average, but it’s not enough for a minimum delivery of oil,” Sutherland said.
There were 2,045 straight HEAP clients in 2006, meaning they were not also receiving food stamps or cash assistance. Exact numbers for this year so far were unavailable.
“People are finding themselves in dire straights when it comes to paying for fuel oil or getting to work,” said Janice Burt-Ashton, the county’s deputy director of social services.
Jane Coddington, director of Chenango County Catholic Charities, said her office had also been “hearing stories about people having to making a choice between food on the table or gasoline.”
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