More Stimulus Money Released -- This Will Be The Largest LIHEAP Release In The History Of The Program -- April 21, 2022

Link to Tsvetana Paraskova.

The Biden Administration will release over $385 million to states to help Americans with their home energy costs through the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program as President Joe Biden is looking to tame the soaring prices of gasoline and energy amid international prices at multi-year highs.

The latest funding, to be made available by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), adds to $4.5 billion in the American Rescue Plan for LIHEAP. 

In total, the U.S. Administration would be providing more than $8.3 billion in LIHEAP assistance to reduce heating and cooling costs for low-income Americans this year, which is the largest investment in a single year since the program was established in 1981.

LIHEAP assists eligible low-income households with their heating and cooling energy costs, bill payment assistance, energy crisis assistance, weatherization, and energy-related home repairs. Of course, the lower-middle class and the middle-middle class would see no assistance. Let them eat bread.

The Administration is scrambling to lower home energy costs and gasoline prices for Americans as international oil prices – the largest factor in determining the price at the pump – hit $100 after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Yes, this is all about Ukraine. Nothing about killing the Keystone XL, banning drilling on federal land, slow-rolling fracking permits. 

Gasoline prices in the U.S. hit a fresh multi-year high in March at over $4.30 per gallon. We've talked about this before. That's the average; that's not what most people are paying.