New Hampshire Provides State Funds, Shifts Electric Funds

On November 16, New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch signed into law a bill passed during a special legislative session allocating $10 million from the state's general fund to LIHEAP. The additional money will allow LIHEAP recipients to purchase the same amount of fuel they did last year – the average LIHEAP grant is expected to rise from about $570 to more than $850, and the program may be able to serve more households.

Another $3 million will come from redistribution of funds from an electric bill system benefits charge that provides for both energy-efficiency programs and low-income electric bill assistance (known as the Electric Assistance Program or EAP) to shift the balance toward assistance. As a result, about 6,500 low-income households on the waiting list for EAP, which currently serves about 22,500 households, will receive assistance. The law requires the state’s electric utilities to allocate more money to the EAP, up to $3 million, and then pay themselves back from the energy efficiency portion of the fund over the next three years. With this strategy, worked out through a legislative compromise, energy efficiency program funding will be minimally impacted, legislators said.

Source: Concord Monitor

Page Last Updated: September 24, 2009