In this episode of Good Cents by Payactiv, host Eric Rosenberg explores practical ways to tackle utility expenses, including energy, water, and internet bills. These essentials can strain monthly budgets, but Eric highlights financial assistance programs and energy-saving strategies to ease the burden. Whether you’re struggling with high bills or simply looking to save, this episode is packed with actionable insights and resources. Here are the key takeaways

• National Assistance Programs:
  • LIHEAP (Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program): Offers one-time utility bill payments, energy crisis intervention, and weatherization assistance.
  • Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP): Provides funding for home upgrades to reduce energy bills.
  • Lifeline Program (FCC): Supports low-income households with phone and internet bill subsidies.
• State-Level Programs:
  • California: CARE and FERA provide discounts of up to 35% on energy bills.
  • New York: HEAP offers heating assistance and emergency benefits.
  • Texas: CEAP delivers bill assistance and energy education.
  • Pennsylvania: CAP and LIURP reduce utility debts and monthly bills.
• Utility Company Assistance: Many companies offer programs for low-income customers, including discounts, appliance upgrades, and free installation of energy-saving devices.
• Energy-Saving Tips: Optimize energy use with strategies like adjusting your thermostat, using efficient appliances, and weatherizing your home.

Eric Rosenberg:

Today’s episode is intended for education and entertainment purposes only and should not be considered financial or legal advice.

Hello, my friends. Welcome back to the Good Cents by Payactiv Podcast. As always, I am your host, Eric Rosenberg. Today we’re going to talk about one of those items that seems to always be on our budgets, but we don’t spend a lot of time talking about because it’s something we can’t totally get rid of, and that is our utilities. So we’re talking about our power bill, our natural gas bill, our water bill, and our internet bill.

Those are things that we often can’t go without for obvious reasons. We need to be safe and comfortable and have a warm place to live. We need the water to work when we turn the sink on. So what can we do to potentially save there?

Well, of course we can try to budget our usage so we can turn the power off when we leave a room. We can lower or raise our thermostat based on the season to use less resources there. We can cut back on our water usage. But sometimes we just have to pay these bills. We’ve hit our minimum, and it’s just too tough to keep up with what we have to pay every month.

That’s what we’re going to talk about today. We’re going to talk about utility and energy assistance programs, many of them come from government agencies or your utility company. So right now we’re going to take a moment to dive in and look at what you might be able to do to get help with your utility bills, especially during those really tight budgeting months.

Okay, everyone. So first we’re going to talk a little bit about how these utility savings plans can work, and then we’ll get into the specifics so you know where to look and find programs that could be available to you personally. It could save your household a lot of money.

So financial assistance programs are generally designed for low-income households or disabled households. What’s available to you really varies by location, but there are some nationally available programs we’ll talk about that anyone who’s listening might be able to use. Then we’ll talk about some of the most populated states, like where I am here in California, to understand other specific state programs that might be available. Of course, we don’t have time to talk about every state, but it’s a good idea to know what you might be able to find with these examples.

We’ll also talk a little bit about utility-based programs. So that’s a program that might come from your specific utility company. That’s who you pay your monthly bill to. So let’s dive in and start looking at these nationally available assistance programs.

So the first one we’ll talk about is called the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program or LIHEAP, L-I-H-E-A-P. Of course, government programs all have acronyms. So this is a federal program providing financial assistance for energy costs. So that’s in your power bill or your natural gas bill specifically. That doesn’t apply to things like telecom or water.

The benefits of this program include one-time payments for utility bills. So if one month you just can’t afford it, you might be able to get it covered. Energy crisis intervention. That means if you are worried about your heat not working in the winter, for example, you might be able to have this program step in and keep your service on. That’s especially important in cold climates, in the winter, or really, really hot climates in the summer. We have to stay safe. Energy crisis is what would allow you to stay safe during those tough periods.

Finally, there’s funding for weatherization and energy-related home repairs. So weatherization means making your home more climate resistant. So if you have leaky windows where it’s always really cold by the window in the winter, that drives up your utility costs, and fixing that might make your home more comfortable and save you money. So weatherization repairs and benefits could be a really great long-term value.

Now this program recently received $500 million in new federal funding, and eligibility is based on your family’s income and your household size. So if you are a high-income household, you wouldn’t qualify. If you’re a lower income household, you would qualify. If you have a lot of kids, you would qualify even with a slightly higher income.

So you can apply through a local provider. You can call to get more information. There’s a national number. It’s 866-674-6327, or you could just type in on your search engine L-I-H-E-A-P and you’ll find more details on how to apply there.

Those energy efficiency upgrades, I really do want to emphasize how great that can be. If you can get help repairing or upgrading a part of your home, like we said, it can save you money on your utility bill every month forever. So if you’re a homeowner and you have really high utility bills every month or during certain parts of the year, taking advantage of just that, even if you’re able to keep up with your bills most of the time, should save you money forever.

I’m a big fan of doing something that will save you money forever. That’s a huge win for our budget. I can free up money for other things like groceries or even maybe saving for retirement, putting your first emergency fund together. You can do that with the Payactiv app, of course. So that’s a great benefit there.

Next we’ll talk about the Energy Savings Assistance program or ESA. ESA offers free home improvements and appliance upgrades to eligible customers. So that could include things like energy-efficient refrigerators or heat pump water heaters, weatherization, that’s another one that we’ve already talked about, and no-cost installation for energy-saving devices. Let’s get into what some of that might mean for you.

So like an energy-efficient refrigerator, if you ever walk around the hardware store or the appliance store, you probably see those stickers that say how much energy this refrigerator or freezer would use per year. But when you think about it, even though it might cost more to get an efficient refrigerator, if you’re saving money on your power bill every month because of it, eventually it could pay for the difference and then some.

So with the ESA program, you might get funding to help you buy that energy-efficient refrigerator. So that’ll lower your power bill and probably get you a little bit nicer refrigerator at the same time. So there’s a win-win.

A heat pump water heater, that’s something we actually have in our house. We got the heat pump for free from our local water department. What that does is during the hours we’re awake, we have a timer set on it, it will pump hot water through our pipes periodically. So when we turn the pipe on, we don’t have to wait for all that cold water to come through before the water heats up. So when you jump in the shower, you often let the water run for a minute or so to heat up. We can avoid doing that, which saves water. That lowers our water costs.

It does increase our natural gas bill a tiny bit and our electric bill a tiny bit. But the savings on water, especially here where water costs can be quite high, that definitely comes out in the wash and ends up being a benefit for us, and it helps the environment. We’re in a place where there’s often water shortages. So that’s a win-win again for the environment and for our budget.

Weatherization, I’m not going to talk about that too much again. But, remember, things like insulation, if you have an attic where a lot of heat escapes your house, or weather stripping around the doors and windows, that can be included. You might get assistance or full payments for those.

Then no-cost insulation. That’s another big benefit, especially if you’re not as handy around the house. You might get the program to pay for the installer to come put these devices in. So you might save or get it all for free. It depends again on your income and if you’re eligible based on those factors. So check out, go to the ESA, Energy Savings Assistance program, for that.

There’s another program from the US Department of Energy called the Weatherization Assistance Program or WAP. So that one, I’m not going to get into weatherization again, we’ve talked about it quite a bit, but it offers home improvements that save you money on your energy bill.

Your eligibility is based on your income, or if you’re in a specific federal income assistance program like Social Security’s disability insurance or the TANF, T-A-N-F, program, that’s a federal assistance program for money, either of those might qualify you. So you can find more information for that one. Contact your state office of the US Department of Energy. If you type in your favorite search engine WAP, Weatherization Assistance Program, you’ll get information there that can help you apply.

Finally, the last federal program we want to talk about today is called the Lifeline program from the FCC, the Federal Communication Commission. So that focuses on your communication, so your phone and your internet service. So if you struggle to keep your phone service going, phones are an essential lifeline. That’s how it got the name. If something happens, you need to be able to dial 911.

Internet service is increasingly critical for communications. It might even be something like you have a combined phone internet service, so your phone runs over your internet.

Whatever it is, if you are struggling with your communication bill, check out that Lifeline program from the FCC. That might subsidize your costs and help you pay for those bills.

So those are the federal programs we want to talk about for today. Those are available generally nationwide. You might have to do something like supply your latest tax return or a pay stub to prove you qualify, but that’s an easy couple of steps to follow to get what could be a significant financial assistance on your bills. So definitely don’t discount what you might get from there.

Now I want to talk a little bit about state programs. State programs will be available, and every state has a different set of programs. So I’m going to start talking about California where I live. Then we’ll talk about New York, Texas, and Pennsylvania, because those are some of the more populated states. But if I don’t mention your state, that doesn’t mean you don’t have a program. So definitely check out your state programs. Type in your state and energy savings programs or utility assistance programs, and you’ll get some options that you might have. Some states have less, some states have more.

So the California program I want to talk about first is called CARE. That’s the California Alternate Rates for Energy. So what that does is for qualifying people who have a specific maximum income, so if you make less than that amount, or you’re enrolled in public assistance programs, you’ll typically qualify. You sign up through your utility company. So where I live, that’s Southern California Edison. It could be San Diego Gas and Electric or Pacific Gas and Electric. It depends on where you live. But you can get a discount of 30 to 35% on your electric bill and 20% on your natural gas bill if you qualify. So depending on how much you pay every month, that could be a huge savings.

Next, there’s the Family Electric Rate Assistance Plan or FERA that offers an 18% discount on power bills, especially for larger families. The income limits are a little higher than the CARE program. So you might qualify for FERA even if you don’t qualify for CARE.

The Low Income Discount Program or LIDP, got to love these acronyms, offers discounts on power, water, and other services to residents with an annual gross income of 33,820 or less. So, again, that’s a specific income cap. But if you’re below that, definitely take advantage.

Finally, there’s a Lifeline program from the state, that’s different from the FCC one we just talked about, that provides discounts on utilities and potentially even a full exemption from taxes for utilities if you are 62 years or older or permanently disabled and have a household income under $41,800. Those income limits can change per year. So depending on when you’re listening, it’s definitely worth searching if you live in California to see if those income limits have gone up, because it might change it so you do qualify.

So in New York, one that I want to mention is the Home Energy Assistance Program or HEAP, again acronyms, the state-run version of LIHEAP, the federal one we talked about earlier, offers heating assistance and emergency benefits. So those cold months in New York or those ultra hot months, it’ll help you maybe keep your heater on or keep your air conditioning running, which can be really important for your safety and definitely for your comfort.

If you live in Texas, down south, there’s a program called the Comprehensive Energy Assistance Program or CEAP that provides utility bill assistance and energy education for lower income households that can help you learn ways to cut your utility bills while also getting some funding to help cover them.

If you live in Pennsylvania, up there in the East Coast, the Customer Assistance Program or CAP helps lower monthly utility bills. If you have utility debts, if you have a backlog of what you owe the utility companies, that might help reduce or cancel that debt. The CARES program or Customer Assistance Referral and Evaluation Program provides support for customers experiencing temporary hardships. So even if you have a little bit higher income, you have a job loss or something like that, you might be able to save there.

The Pennsylvania government also offers what’s called the Low Income Usage Reduction Program or LIURP. I’m going to make up what that sounds like, LIURP. That helps eligible customers lower their electricity and natural gas usage. So you might find weatherization help or other efficiency benefits.

Remember that’s just 4 states out of 50. So there’s a lot of different versions of certain programs. You might get them through your local utility company or Social Services departments or directly from a state agency. The eligibility criteria and the benefits you get vary widely depending on where you live. What we have in California is going to look very different than what you might have in Louisiana or Minnesota or Nevada.

We’re all different, but there’s often some kind of help, including emergency bill payment help, budget plans that you can smooth out your billing so you don’t have super high months or super low months for your bill, And energy efficiency incentives. So things to help you improve your energy usage through methods we already talked about to lower your bills for the long haul.

Now there’s also plans that you might get directly from the local utility company. so that wouldn’t be a state agency or a federal agency. that would come right from your power company. So here I’ve mentioned we use Pacific Edison as our utility company. so whoever you pay your bill to, you might be able to reach out for help.

So those assistance programs, I think there’s way more of those than there are state programs because there are so many utility companies. So you should check and see what you might find online, or call the customer service number on your bill to ask for options. For example, I know my mom in Colorado, she has a program through the Denver Water Company that allows her to smooth out her water bill.

So she uses generally more water in the summer. It’s common in her neighborhood. So her bills go way up in the summer, but then they go way down in the winter. So with that program, they add up the average bill that you have and they divide it by 12, so you don’t pay way more some months than other months.

There are some of these programs, you might even get a discount on your bill based on your income. You will typically have to give over that documentation we talked about. So they’ll already have your energy bills, but you might have to provide a tax return or a pay stub or something like that to prove you qualify. You might have to recertify every year, but it’s good to stay informed about eligibility guidelines and know that you can apply to save through these programs.

There’s a helpline available in some areas. You just dial 211 and hit call, and they’ll help you find local resources to save on your utilities.

Remember, some states also have consumer rights laws and utility disconnection laws. So even if you can’t pay your bill for a period of time, they won’t just shut you off because that can be dangerous for your safety, and it’s also no fun to have your utility shut off. So if you’re struggling, if you can’t get that bill paid, definitely take the time to reach out right to your utility provider, let them know what’s going on and see what they might be able to help you with.

Remember, you don’t have to be embarrassed about using these programs. You don’t have to feel bad. They’re there for a reason. There are so many people that need help with their utilities. It’s worthwhile to take some time to explore available assistance options. These programs can reduce your financial stress, sometimes significantly, and that can help make your life easier. It can help your physical health. It’s just a good thing all around.

So if you’re struggling with your utilities, if you’re having trouble paying those bills, definitely take the time to check into these federal, state, and local utility-based programs that could help you save big on your utility bills.

Well, I hope you found that useful and valuable. If you are struggling to keep up with those monthly bills, definitely check out federal programs, state programs, and programs offered by your local utility companies. Of course, you can search online. You can Google it and see what they have, or you can call the customer service numbers and ask about potential support programs to help you get through those rough times on our bills. If you’re listening to this in the winter as I’m recording, it’s definitely that time of year where we often see our power and gas bills shoot up to some of the highest we see during the year.

So don’t feel bad. It’s okay. These programs are there for a reason, and they are designed to help you make the most of your money during those seasons with peak utility costs.

So thank you all for listening till the end. Until next time, keep living the life you’ve earned.

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