Aid cuts forecast for winter heating season

By Brian Boyd

Local assistance programs are bracing for cuts in home heating oil aid, even as the federal government predicts record prices this winter.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects the average price paid by households in the Northeast this winter will reach a record $3.71 per gallon, a 10 percent increase over last winter, the agency announced Wednesday.

Until Washington lawmakers agree on a final budget, local nonprofit leaders are uncertain how much money will be available for families trying to stay warm. They expect the same number of applicants as last winter, but the competing budget plans include cuts ranging from about a third to half of last year's federal aid.

"Whatever the figure we're going to get, it's definitely going to be a cut," said Elizabeth Berube, director of a fuel assistance program at Citizens for Citizens Inc., a social services provider for the Fall River and Taunton areas.

In the meantime, officials have planned for the worst as they work in the dark.

"Trying to predict what this government is going to do, you would be better off going to a casino," said Bruce Morell, executive director of People Acting In Community Endeavors, a New Bedford-based social services provider.

The average oil price has more than doubled over the last seven winters, from $1.45 per gallon during the winter of 2003-04 to $3.38 per gallon in 2010-11. By comparison, the average price of natural gas for households grew 14 percent in the same period, the Energy Information Administration said.

This week's average price for heating oil in Massachusetts is $3.64, up from $2.94 at this time last year, according to a survey by the state Department of Energy Resources.

The White House and Congress have proposed different amounts for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP. The Obama administration's plan would provide $81 million for Massachusetts, compared with $183 million last winter, Berube said.

The Senate and House are considering more generous allocations, but their plans could still result in about a third of funding being cut, according to Berube and Morell.

For now, local programs have to get ready for the assistance season, which begins Nov. 1, without a concrete figure.

"We're just waiting and hoping we hear something before the end of the month," Berube said.

Assistance will be available for families of four who earn up to $60,035 a year, for a family of three making up to $50,429, for a family of two making up to $40,824, and one person earning up to $31,218, she said.

The state had to set an initial maximum benefit before the season began, and it had to go with $400 for the neediest households based on the White House's stingier plan. Last year, the state began with a $500 cap and increased the number to $1,050 on Jan. 15 after additional money was appropriated, Morell said.

A smaller appropriation this year could be stretched by rising prices and stable demand for the assistance.

"We're expecting demand not to change significantly one way or another" compared with last winter, Morell said.

His agency sent out 14,000 applications to existing clients, and he estimates they have received about 5,000 replies. New clients must make in-person appointments to apply.

Berube said her organization had approved 2,257 applications as of Wednesday and another 6,761 are pending, about the same number at the same time last year.

With the potential cuts, Citizens for Citizens has 16 employees processing fuel assistance paperwork, down from 20 or more last year, she added.

"We have not brought all of the staff back because of all of the uncertainty," she said.