AUGUSTA – With 75 percent of this winter’s federal fuel assistance money for the state expected to be spent by Jan. 1, thousands of Mainers risk freezing if more isn’t allocated.
Most of the approximately $19.4 million from the federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program has already been used, Maine Housing Authority spokesman Dan Simpson said. That leaves people to rely on their town’s welfare programs and charity organizations if state and federal governments don’t appropriate more.
Heather Moody, a Kingfield selectman and the town’s general assistance administrator, said she expects to see many more people apply for assistance this winter than previous ones, but she worries that some of the neediest will freeze in their homes rather than ask for help.
“People have a lot of pride,” she said. “A lot of them will not come in and fill out the General Assistance paper.
“I don’t want to see someone freeze to death in their own home because they have too much pride to come into the town office,” Moody said.
Judy Frost, housing director for Wilton-based social services group Western Maine Community Action, said, “We’ve [already] seen a lot of new people” coming for help.
Thelma Gibson, Rumford’s general assistance administrator, said she fears people are going to have to make hard choices. “They’ll have to give things up” like food and medicine, she said.
So far, the amount budgeted for LIHEAP does not reflect the ever-increasing oil prices which have brought the cost of heating an average home with oil or natural gas up approximately 30 percent, according to a federal Energy Information Administration forecast.
With oil prices so high, the $440 average LIHEAP benefit is less than the cost of filling the average heating oil tank, said Paris-based Community Concepts spokeswoman Mary Ellen Therriault.
Joy Leach, spokeswoman for Gov. John Baldacci, said Thursday that the governor has secured a bipartisan agreement in the Legislature that the first order of business Jan. 4 would be to appropriate $5 million to supplement LIHEAP funds.
Baldacci also recently launched a Keep Maine Warm charitable fund and is actively encouraging donations. The money in that fund will go to Mainers who need assistance but do not qualify for LIHEAP.
Last year, about 100,000 Mainers got LIHEAP money, Simpson said.
Beth Nagusky, director of Energy Independence for Baldacci, said legislators nationwide are trying to push through a measure “to support a $2.92 billion” increase in federal LIHEAP funding, which would add $20 million to the state’s reserves.
Beyond basic necessities, this holiday season many Mainers are being forced to still make difficult decisions. “Unless you’ve had to choose between rent and supper,” said Moody, “you just don’t understand what it’s like.” Legislators “just say, get a job.’ I have two jobs,” as a teacher and a waitress, she said.
Moody has already cautioned her two children, “This isn’t going to be a big Christmas,” but said her son simply told her to “ask Santa” for presents.
“Maybe I should just send the oil bill to Santa,” she said.
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