THE ENERGY INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION REPORTED THAT 34 MILLION U. S. HOUSEHOLDS HAD DIFFICULTY MEETING THEIR ENERGY NEEDS IN 2020, WITH 25 MILLION( 20 % OF ALL HOUSEHOLDS) FOREGOING FOOD AND MEDICINE TO PAY FOR UTILITIES.
Joining Sanders on the letter are Sens. Angela Alsobrooks( D-Md.), Tammy Baldwin( D-Wis.), Michael Bennet( D-Colo.), Richard Blumenthal( D-Conn.), Lisa Blunt Rochester( D-Del.), Cory Booker( D-N. J.), Tammy Duckworth( D-Ill.), Dick Durbin( D-Ill.), John Fetterman( D-Pa.), Kirsten Gillibrand( D-N. Y.), Maggie Hassan( D-N. H.), Mazie Hirono( D-Hawaii), Tim Kaine( D-Va.), Andy Kim( D-N. J.), Angus King( I-Maine), Amy Klobuchar( D-Minn.), Ben Ray Luján( D-N. M.), Ed Markey( D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley( D-Ore.), Jack Reed( D-R. I.), Jacky Rosen( D-Nev.), Chuck Schumer( D-N. Y.), Jeanne Shaheen( D-N. H.), Elissa Slotkin( D-Mich.), Tina Smith( D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen( D-Md.), Raphael Warnock( D-Ga.), Elizabeth Warren( D-Mass.), Sheldon Whitehouse( D-R. I.), and Ron Wyden( D-Ore).
“ Last year, LIHEAP provided over 6 million American households with the assistance they needed to heat their homes during extremely cold winters and to keep air conditioners running in the soaring heat. Without this bipartisan program, Americans throughout the country would be forced to make the unacceptable choice between putting food on the table, paying for prescription drugs, or heating their homes in the winter,” Sanders and the senators wrote.“ In the richest country in the history of the world, no one should be forced to make that unacceptable decision.”
For almost 45 years, LIHEAP has helped families around the nation with the costs of home energy bills. Rising energy costs have made this assistance even more important for working families, seniors and people with disabilities. According to the Census Bureau, more than 23 percent of households report that they were unable to pay their energy bills in full last year.“ The administration has a legal and moral obligation to disburse LIHEAP funds to states and to uphold the program’ s promise to help families keep the heat and air condition on,” Sanders and the senators continued.“ Therefore, we urge you to immediately reinstate all of the LIHEAP staff that were terminated, reopen the Division of Energy Assistance( DEA) that administers this program, and disburse all of the LIHEAP funds that Congress has appropriated. Being able to heat your home in the freezing cold and keep the air condition on in the extreme heat is not a luxury. It is a matter of life and death.”
Here is the text of the letter:
Dear Secretary Kennedy: We are strongly opposed to your recent
Sen. Bernie Sanders decision to terminate the entire staff responsible for administering the highly successful and efficient Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program( LIHEAP). These arbitrary terminations threaten the continued existence of the only federal program in our country that helps millions of seniors on fixed incomes, families with young children, and people
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. with disabilities stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Last year, LIHEAP provided over 6 million American households with the assistance they needed to heat their homes during extremely cold winters and to keep air conditioners running in the soaring heat.
Without this bipartisan program, Americans throughout the country would be forced to make the unacceptable choice between putting food on the table, paying for prescription drugs, or heating their homes in the winter. In the richest country in the history of the world, no one should be forced to make that unacceptable decision.
With energy prices and utility bills going up throughout the country, LIHEAP is more important now than ever. Across the United States, more than 23 percent of households report that they were unable to pay their energy bills in full last year. And the administration’ s recent tariffs are expected to raise utility bills even higher. States are still waiting on HHS to release nearly $ 400 million in Fiscal Year 2025 funding approved by Congress in March to weatherize low-income homes, provide emergency air conditioning assistance and plan for next year’ s winter season. 2
By terminating all 23 employees tasked with overseeing LIHEAP, it is now unclear how these funds will be administered.
In our view, that is unacceptable. The administration has a legal and moral obligation to disburse LIHEAP funds to states and to uphold the program’ s promise to help families keep the heat and air condition on. Failure to disburse these funds constitutes an illegal impoundment of bipartisan, congressionally appropriated funds and will put the health and well-being of some of the most vulnerable people in America at risk.
Therefore, we urge you to immediately reinstate all of the LIHEAP staff that were terminated, reopen the Division of Energy Assistance( DEA) that administers this program, and disburse all of the LIHEAP funds that Congress has appropriated. Being able to heat your home in the freezing cold and keep the air condition on in the extreme heat is not a luxury. It is a
18 MAY 2025 | FUEL OIL NEWS | www. fueloilnews. com