Home heating costs are on the rise but government assistance is running short
As winter temperatures arrive across America, government officials are bracing for a surge of households unable to pay rising winter heating bills.
WASHINGTON — As winter temperatures arrive across America, government officials are bracing for a surge of households unable to pay rising winter heating bills, and dwindling resources available to help cover the costs.
For the average household, home heating costs are projected to rise 28% — on top of double-digit increases last year — driven largely by the disruption to energy markets caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and surging demand for fossil fuels. At the same time, federally funded programs to help low-income households with those bills will have 42% less money this winter after the billions of dollars in Covid stimulus available last winter runs out.
The surge in demand and drop in aid is causing concern throughout state and federal governments. In anticipation, the White House has taken a three-prong approach the past year, said an administration official: It has urged oil companies to bolster their stockpiles; make funds available to weatherize homes and make them more energy efficient; and prepare for further releases from the country's petroleum or heating oil reserves.
Extreme lake-effect snow continues to pile up, topping 6 feetNov. 20, 202201:48But temperatures are already dropping and the number of households seeking assistance is already on the rise, according to interviews with more than a half dozen officials involved in programs that provide heating assistance.
“We’re already seeing record numbers of requests this season for utility assistance and really the heating season is just beginning,” said Scott Kelly, general secretary of the Massachusetts division of the Salvation Army, an international charitable organization. “Our social workers are seeing people who have never needed to ask for help before, so it’s definitely concerning to us. We are very concerned about what the future will hold this heating season.”
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