John,

July 2023 was the hottest month ever recorded and the extreme heat isn’t letting up on large swaths of the country.¹ Millions of people are being forced to choose between food and other essentials, or pay their skyrocketing utility bills due to constantly running their fans or air conditioners.

Even before the unprecedented heatwave, it was estimated that utility costs would increase by 11.7% from last summer.² With the heatwave showing no signs of slowing down, people need help paying their utility bills right now just to keep themselves safe.

The most impacted by these soaring costs are the elderly and low-income households. The federal government provides funding to states to help low-income households pay for heating and utility bills through the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Unfortunately, federal funds are only available for about 1 out of 6 eligible households, and 85% of the funding is used for heating during the winter months.³

Congress must address the effects of the climate crisis and tackle this head on. The National Energy Assistance Directors Association is asking Congress to increase home energy assistance by $3 billion in funding to help six million households pay their cooling bills this summer.⁴ Without this funding, people may be faced with a range of heat-related illnesses that can threaten their lives.

With heatwaves becoming the new normal due to the climate crisis, it’s unacceptable and inhumane for households to be without adequate cooling during the summer months. Send a direct message to Congress urging them to increase LIHEAP funding by $3 billion to help families escape dangerous heat.

Close to 20 million households—1 in 6—owe $19.5 billion in past due utility bills. Only 19 states plus Washington, D.C. have laws in place to prevent utility shut-offs during the summer.⁵ And these shut-offs are not hitting every community equally. Utility shut-offs have increased by 15% over last year and have disproportionately affected Black households with incomes low enough to receive SNAP benefits, with 14% of those surveyed having had their utilities shut off in the previous 30 days.⁶

Millions more people will continue to suffer as these extreme temperatures show no signs of lessening and it continues to get hotter each summer. Our government must do more to help lower utility bills and keep people safe in their homes.

Click here to send a letter to Congress urging them to increase funding for LIHEAP by $3 billion during this extreme heatwave.

Thank you for all you do to help vulnerable communities,

Deborah Weinstein
Executive Director, Coalition on Human Needs

¹ July 2023 hottest month on record as heatwaves scorch Earth
² Cooling Bills Estimated to Increase by 11.7%
³ Energy bills soar as people try to survive the heat. What's being done?
⁴ States Call for Utilities to Suspend Shut-Offs During the Heat Emergency, Providing Emergency Funding to Pay Cooling Bills and the Develop a National Cooling Strategy for Low Income Families
⁵ Opinion: Staying cool during heat waves is getting more expensive. It’s time for a new strategy
⁶ SNAP Households Survey July Results