Curry bill to help Mainers access heating assistance signed into law

AUGUSTA — On Tuesday, Gov. Janet Mills signed into law a bill from Sen. Chip Curry, D-Belfast. LD 1966, “An Act To Facilitate Access to Heating Assistance,” will reduce barriers Mainers face in accessing heating assistance. 

“Between increasing home heating prices, rising electricity bills and spiking gas bills, Mainers’ finances took a major hit over this winter. Many people continue to struggle. While our state thankfully received an infusion of federal money to help more people, outdated bureaucratic hurdles stood in the way of people getting the help they needed in a timely way. This bill, now law, will help tear down those hurdles,” said Sen. Curry. “I’m incredibly proud of the strong support this bill has received throughout the legislative process, receiving unanimous support from the committee and the full Legislature. I’m also grateful to Gov. Mills for signing this bill into law so quickly.”

LD 1966 would require the Maine State Housing Authority to adopt rules for the administration of its fuel assistance program that require local program operators and administrators — particularly the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or HEAP — to accept online applications. Local Community Action Programs administer applications for HEAP. The current process of applying for HEAP has created a bottleneck for applicants, with far too many Mainers waiting months to receive the assistance they need and qualify for. The committee amendment added an emergency clause to the bill.

“HEAP is a complicated program based on federal rules. We are mandated to provide the greatest benefit to the poorest people with the highest heating cost burden. This makes HEAP more complicated than a typical low-income benefit. Changes like categorical eligibility and online applications will not be simple, nor will they be silver bullets, but they all should make a difference in this process,” said Erik Jorgensen with MaineHousing, in testimony supporting the bill.

Maine Community Action Partnership and Maine Equal Justice also testified in favor of the bill.

LD 1966 is part of a package of bills sponsored by Legislative Democrats to help Mainers who are struggling to keep up with spiking energy bills. Other bills in the package are:

• LD 2010, “An Act to Help Maine Residents with High Electricity Cost,” sponsored by Senate President Troy Jackson, D-Allagash
• LD 1913, “An Act To Review Strategies for Improving Utility Rate Affordability and To Provide Utility Relief,” sponsored by Sen. Eloise Vitelli, D-Arrowsic
• LD 2006, “An Act to Improve the Low-income Home Energy Assistance Program,” sponsored by Rep. Raegan LaRochelle, D-Augusta

As an emergency measure, LD 1966 went into effect immediately upon becoming law.