Help with Heating Bills is on the Way
| For Immediate Release: January 16, 2008 | Contact: Peter Karafotas (202) 226-6898 |
Help with Heating Bills is on the Way | ||
| Congressional Funding for Energy Assistance Is Released by Bush Administration | ||
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) applauded the release by the Bush Administration of $450 million in energy assistance to help seniors and working families keep the heat on this winter. "We are glad that the Bush Administration responded to calls from Congress to release emergency funding under the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) that will help seniors and working families keep the heat on this winter,... said U.S. Representative Schakowsky. "Thousands of families in the Chicagoland area are struggling to pay their heating bills this winter as energy prices continue to soar. No one should be forced to choose between keeping their heat on this winter and buying other necessities such as food.... The 110th Congress included $2.6 billion in LIHEAP funding in recently enacted omnibus bill, which was a $400 million increase over last year. Illinois will receive $29 million in funding to help working families pay their heating bills. This winter, Americans using heating oil will pay more than $2,000 per family-over three times the 2001 costs. |