| Despite our continuing hot weather,
many people I meet are already anxious about the cold
weather heating months. There is talk of heating oil hitting
five dollars a gallon. As a result, many of our friends
and neighbors are feeling vulnerable and worried about
whether they will be able to afford heating their homes
this winter.
The Governor and members of the General Assembly share
this concern. That is why Governor M. Jodi Rell has
called a special legislative session tentatively scheduled
for August 22 to consider a number of proposals to help
keep Connecticut residents warm this winter. Among other
things, legislators will consider the Governor’s
proposal to use about $22 million in anticipated surplus
from the just ended fiscal year for heating assistance.
Other proposals on the table for this special session
include:
• Making it possible for Operation Fuel - a non
profit agency created by the state to provide energy
assistance funded largely through donations - to offer
assistance to middle-income families, in addition to
low-income families, who need emergency help this winter.
• Directing 50 percent of abandoned utility deposits
and refunds that escheat to the state to Operation Fuel.
• Requiring home heating oil dealers to guarantee
their pre-paid contracts.
• Providing grants to heat schools and classrooms.
• Providing heating assistance to non-profit
human service providers.
• Providing home heating assistance for senior
citizens.
State government agencies have other plans in the
works, as well, to help Connecticut’s most vulnerable
citizens get through this winter. The state Department
of Social Services (DSS), in cooperation with regional
Community Action Agencies, municipal and nonprofit human
service agencies, have already begun accepting applications
for the Connecticut Energy Assistance Program (CEAP)
and the Contingency Heating Assistance Program (CHAP).
A great deal of information about both of these programs,
including eligibility guidelines, is available by accessing
the state website at www.ct.gov/dss, clicking on “elders”
(although you do not have to be a senior in order to
qualify for this aid) at the left side of the web page
and following the link. Also, interested persons can
call 2-1-1 Infoline or the state DSS energy office at
1-800-842-1132.
Recently, the Governor presented legislative leaders
with her plan to distribute $84 million in winter heating
aid under CEAP and significantly increase benefit levels
under this program for elderly, low-income and other
vulnerable households. Her plan calls for setting the
maximum basic benefit for eligible households at $675
for homeowners and renters whose heat is not included
in the rent, and up to $270 for renters whose heat is
included in the rent.
In addition, the Governor’s plan calls for:
providing one-time crisis benefits for eligible persons;
making Safety Net Assistance benefits available to deliverable
fuel households that have exhausted their basic and
crisis benefits and face a life threatening situation;
increasing the number of Safety Net Assistance Benefits
that may be awarded under CEAP; and increasing funding
for the CEAP furnace repair/ replacement and tuning
program. The Governor’s plans for distributing
funding under this year’s heating assistance program
are subject to approval by the General Assembly’s
Appropriations, Human Services, and Energy & Technology
Committees.
While both CEAP and CHAP are administered by the state,
both programs are primarily funded by the federal government’s
Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).
Connecticut – along with other New England states
– is working to convince Congress to increase
LIHEAP funding this winter.
I plan to support a sensible proposal to help people
in need this Winter. We have to be careful, however,
with our small surplus this fiscal year because it is
precarious (only a few months ago there was a deficit
projected for the fiscal year that just ended) and because
there are substantial state budget deficits being projected
for the near future. I am convinced, however, that we
can strike a balance between expanding assistance to
people who will need it during these tough times while
also being fiscally responsible. Please feel free to
contact me if you have any questions or comments. You
can call my legislative office in Hartford at 860-240-8800,
or e-mail me at Sam.Caligiuri@cga.ct.gov.
| 
