NFFN Press Room

Generate letters to both of your Senators and your member of the House of Representative

Have you made your voice heard in support of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program?

Have you let your Congressional delegation know how important it is to provide at least $5.1 billion in funding for LIHEAP for FY 2011?

If you have not, please take a few minutes to visit the website sponsored by the American Gas Association and send letters to Congress supporting this vital program. The site is easy to use and with just a few keystrokes you can generate letters to both of your Senators and your US House of Representatives.

During the 2010 National Energy and Utility Affordability Conference, more than 350 letters were sent to Congress by conference attendees. Now it’s your turn to act. Visit the site, send the message and ask your friends to do the same. Let Congress know the importance of this program.

Organize a local press conference to support LIHEAP funding

View videos of model press conferences on LIHEAP funding (approximately 10 minutes each)

• Southern California Gas Company press conference, Los Angeles, May 20, 2010
• NFFN/CEDA press conference, Chicago, December 2, 2010

Statement by Tom Stovall, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Fuel Funds Network

As we stand here this morning, more than 100 NFFN members and LIHEAP supporters are fanning out over Capitol Hill meeting with their Congressional delegations to encourage them to support full funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.

For the last eight years, the NFFN and its partners have organized a day of grassroots lobbying on behalf of LIHEAP. Our members travel to Washington from all over the country to carry to Congress the message that LIHEAP is a vital segment of our social safety net that must be adequately funded.

We all know how difficult life is right now for millions of Americans. For many, LIHEAP provides the aid that enables them to keep their homes safe and livable and their families healthy. Any cuts in funding for LIHEAP would be devastating and would cripple an effective and efficient program.

With this in mind, in my role as NFFN Board Chair I have written to the chairmen and ranking members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees and the subcommittees with jurisdiction over LIHEAP urging them to support $5.1 billion in funding for LIHEAP for the current fiscal year and for FY 2012.

I don’t think I can put it in any stronger words. LIHEAP saves lives. It keeps families in their homes during times of cold and hot weather. It makes coping with the burden of home energy bills easier for the working poor, the elderly, the disabled and those facing the financial hardships caused by our current economic conditions.

Again I urge Congress to support this important program and provide the funding necessary to keep the program effective.

For more information contact: Ivan Brandon 240 338-6862

The following letter was sent to Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Sen. Daniel Inouye; Ranking member Sen. Thad Cochran; Subcommittee Chair Sen. Tom Harkin; Ranking member Sen. Richard Shelby; House Appropriations Committee Chair Rep. Harold Rogers; Ranking member Rep. Norman Dicks; Subcommittee Chair Rep. Denny Rehberg; and Ranking member Rep. Rose DeLauro.

I am writing on behalf of the more than 300 non-profit and corporate members of the National Fuel Funds Network to urge you to support providing no less than $5.1 billion in funding for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program for the current fiscal year and FY 2012.

This heating season, Americans are seeking help with their home energy bills in record numbers. Last year, the number of households receiving heating assistance reached a record 8.8 million and an additional 600,000 received cooling aid. This year, LIHEAP agencies are reporting as much as 20 percent increases in applications.

For the last two fiscal years, LIHEAP has been funded at the $5.1 billion level. Any reduction in funding for this vital program would be devastating. Cuts to LIHEAP funding would leave millions of people in need of aid and charitable energy assistance programs, which many NFFN members administer, cannot fill that void.

We are aware of the need to reduce government spending in order to lessen the federal deficit but it is also important for government to, in the words of our founding fathers, “promote the general welfare.”

During these difficult economic times, millions of Americans have had to turn to social safety net programs, like LIHEAP, to keep their homes safe and livable. The brutal weather this winter has only exacerbated the problem.

Now is not the time to abandon those in need. The NFFN believes it is crucial that LIHEAP be maintained at least its current level of funding $5.1 billion for the remainder of FY 2011 and for FY 2012 and we appreciate your support.

Sincerely,
/s/
Tom Stovall
Board Chairman
National Fuel Funds Network

National Fuel Funds on Voice of America News

Voice of America News recently ran a report by radio journalist Shelley Schlender about how safety net programs help families cope with utility crises. The feature describes how programs including LIHEAP and fuel funds help individuals and families cut utility costs and pay utility bills. The report has comments by George Coling, NFFN executive director.

Listen to or download the clip by using the links below.

• Schlender report (Real) - Download 1.3MB
• Listen to Schlender report (Real)
• Schlender report (Real) - Download 896k
• Listen to Schlender report (Real)