This winter, heating costs are predicted to increase once more, particularly for households that use electricity to heat their houses.
The National Energy Assistance Directors Association, which represents state administrators of federal utility aid to low-income households, projects that the average cost of heating a home in the United States will increase by 8.7% to $941 for the season.
According to the agency, this is mostly because of the ongoing increase in electricity costs as well as predictions for colder temperatures in the Midwest and Northeast. At least four people have already been killed by a winter storm that has already affected areas of both regions, interrupted transport, and cut off electricity to hundreds of thousands of homes.
The largest hikes may affect those who use electricity to heat their houses instead of more conventional energy sources like propane, natural gas, or heating oil. According to NEADA last month, their bills are predicted to increase by 14.2% to an average of $1,189, up from $1,040 during the previous winter. According to federal data, the 12-month period ending in November saw a 3.1% increase in electricity bills, which was greater than the 2.7% inflation rate overall.
According to NEADA Executive Director Mark Wolfe, families who just paid record-high electric bills due to the excessive summer temperatures now have to deal with higher winter expenses as well. Both sides are attacking them.
President Joe Biden’s September appropriations package included $3.7 billion for the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which provides qualified households with utility cost subsidies. The $6.1 billion LIHEAP officials have asked for, which would restore the program’s financing to its level for the 2023 fiscal year, is more than $2 billion shy of that amount. Wolfe believes the larger amount is the right amount moving forward, even though it was partially the result of a pandemic-era effort to give low-income people more assistance during the health crisis.
He said that changing weather patterns necessitate a new benchmark, saying, “I thought we had a pretty good case with record summer temperatures.” However, lawmakers have not yet heeded campaigners’ requests for a new influx.
Extreme heat has put a strain on LIHEAP’s resources as climate change contributes to increasingly hot summer temperatures. State organizations that disburse the federal assistance, which was initially intended to address winter heating expenses, have had difficulty keeping up with the increased demand for assistance with air conditioning expenditures. As a result, they must determine how much to provide in each season before their yearly budget runs out.
According to Wolfe, roughly 80% of LIHEAP’s assistance is allocated to winter heating expenses and 20% to summer cooling at the program’s current funding levels. There hasn’t been much left over to assist debtors in paying their past-due debts.
According to Wolfe, the Republican Congress and the incoming Trump administration currently seem to be more interested in reducing funding levels for programs like LIHEAP than in raising them to accommodate evolving requirements. The amount of consumer debt will probably rise much further if we do not get more support.
According to him, this might result in many households losing electricity and having to make difficult decisions about whether to pay for their utility bills or to buy food, medication, and other necessities.
The transition team for President-elect Donald Trump stated that the next administration would fulfill campaign pledges to reduce customers’ energy costs, but they did not comment on LIHEAP financing. Spokesman Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that President Trump will restore America’s energy dominance, safeguard our energy jobs, and lower the cost of living for working families once he takes office.
One in six households, according to NEADA, are already behind on their utility bills. By the end of September, the total amount of money outstanding in arrears for users of natural gas and electricity had increased by around 30% over the previous 12 months, reaching about $21 billion. A large portion of the debt growth, according to NEADA, is attributable to record high summertime home cooling costs.
According to NEADA, the largest utility bill hikes this winter are anticipated to occur in Midwestern households, where average increases for all energy sources since last season have been 14.6%. Customers in the South and West should experience the least increases, at 1.6% and 3.2%, respectively, while bills in the Northeast are expected to rise less sharply, by 5.1%.
Consumers can reduce their heating expenses in a few ways, according to experts. A rebate finder is available on the website https://www.energystar.gov/saveathome to find out what discounts your local utility providers are providing. Additionally, it lists tax credits under Biden’s signature Inflation Reduction Act for energy-saving home improvements, including up to $3,200 for specific modifications like installing a heat pump or adding new windows or insulation.
According to Energy Department estimates, home energy expenditures can be reduced by 11% annually by improving insulation and caulking leaks around windows, doorframes, ducting, and other places where heat can escape. In order to maintain consistent baseline temperatures, it also suggests relocating thermostats away from drafty windows or direct sunlight and lowering them by 7 to 10 degrees Fahrenheit while you’re sleeping or not there.
Setting your water heater to 120 degrees might cost you several hundred dollars more year, according to agency experts, who also point out that water heating is usually the second-largest energy bill. You should also use foam sleeves to insulate any exposed hot water pipes. If you have a dishwasher, think about leaving the door open and allowing your plates air dry instead of using the drying cycle.
Additionally, the majority of the energy used by washing machines is used for water heating. It can be cut in half by just changing the setting from hot to warm.
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