FARAI CHIDEYA, host:
From NPR News, this is NEWS & NOTES. I'm Farai Chideya.
If you're tired of winter weather and dreading your next power bill, you're not alone. Six million Americans need help paying their energy costs, and fortunately help is out there in the form of LIHEAP, the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program. LIHEAP has helped countless Americans keep their homes warm and their appliances working.
Jamita Hutchinson Brown(ph) of Des Moines, Iowa, is a new client. She considers herself a planner but was shocked when she got her first winter heating bill.
Ms. JAMITA HUTCHINSON BROWN: It's like twice as much, gas and hot water heater, electric, all of it.
CHIDEYA: So have you had trouble paying your bills?
Ms. BROWN: Oh, yes I have. If it wasn't for the low income energy assistance program, I don't know what I would have done this winter. Because even when it's not even that cold out, it's still too expensive.
CHIDEYA: How much do you owe the utility company at this point, even with the LIHEAP, the low-income program?
Ms. BROWN: I'm sure it's not accurate, but I'm going to say at least a thousand.
CHIDEYA: That's a lot of money.
Ms. BROWN: Yes, it is.
CHIDEYA: So how does that weigh on you personally, when you think about waking up in the morning, taking care of your kids and knowing that you owe that thousand dollars to the power company?
Ms. BROWN: Oh, it makes me feel terrible. It's like, well, I know like around when April comes, you know, they're really quick to try to, you know, send out disconnection notices and shut people off. So it's like I've got to get that paid by then.
CHIDEYA: So you're worried that the power company is going to cut you off? It sounds like the power company basically is not going to cut you off in the winter when people could freeze to death, but come spring they could just say that's it.
Ms. BROWN: You're right. But that's only if you're on the low income energy assistance program. And, you know, you have to qualify for that. Even though sometimes, you know, you may have a job, or you have a good-paying job, you can still be overqualified for that but still not be able to pay all of your electric bills. So if you're not eligible for that program, I mean, you know, I'm sorry but you're just out there.
CHIDEYA: Uh-huh. You're left hanging. So what do you do to save money? It sounds like during the day you cut your heat down. What else do you do to try to save money?
Ms. BROWN: Well, you know, during these times, you know, you can't go to McDonald's whenever you want to or whenever the kids want to, or anything like that. You know, you just have to cut back those extracurricular activities. And my children, they pretty much, they understand.
CHIDEYA: Right. What advice would you give to someone else who might be in a similar situation? Is there anything that you've learned from, you know, having to deal with the high bills this winter?
Ms. BROWN: Keep it down low. As low as possible, as much as possible as you can. Keep your windows and everything covered up and wear some clothes.
CHIDEYA: Absolutely. Well, Jamita, thank you so much.
Ms. BROWN: You're welcome. Thank you.
CHIDEYA: Again, that was Jamita Hutchinson Brown of Des Moines, Iowa.
Jamita's story is common. Many utility companies are less likely to terminate service from late-paying customers if they're also LIHEAP clients. Though there's always an exception to every rule, like Larissa Lewis of Pecos, New Mexico. She recently lost her job and found herself with a power bill she just couldn't pay.
Ms. LARISSA LEWIS: It was a substantial amount, it was over $400. And I have stopped in the LIHEAP and human services office in December and filled out the forms, and I qualified. And she spoke to my electric company, and she sent them a minimum payment because LIHEAP can only pay current bills, they can't pay your past bills. So they didn't disconnect. And that was in December and, you know, thank God.
So I got another notice in February, about two weeks ago. And I thought, well, that's bizarre. I became very distraught. I borrowed $400 from a friend and I sent it, signature required, money order - everything. On Friday, I realized I had no water.
CHIDEYA: So you've got a well with an electric pump that pumps the water in your house.
Ms. LEWIS: That's the problem. And that well has to be controlled by electricity. It doesn't work without it. And I called the after hours number again on Saturday, and the woman, she was in another city. And she was very confused and she said I can't help you on the weekend.
And I said, wait a minute, I haven't had water since Friday morning. When can I get help? Well, Monday, but then it could be President's Day, I'm not sure about our offices. So I was hysterical. I was melting some snow. I had some water left over, you know, off the roof, a container that collects off the roof. But I couldn't believe it.
CHIDEYA: So it sounds to me that what happened was very much a bureaucratic error on many different levels. First of all, you shouldn't have had to pay the $400 immediately…
Ms. LEWIS: Exactly.
CHIDEYA: …once you are on LIHEAP. And then on top of that, you sent in a payment that didn't seem to really count for anything.
Ms. LEWIS: Yeah.
CHIDEYA: What have you learned from this process, both about empowering yourself as someone who needs energy and who fought really hard to get your energy back, and also about the way these networks of help may not always work?
Ms. LEWIS: Well, here is the thing. Monday morning I got on the phone and called everyone in the phone book in government that I could possibly think of that could have had anything to do with influencing the situation. So I continued, and I called the Public Regulation Commission. By about 4:00, the commissioner's office called me back and said that they had got someone to fix it. And I was stunned, because I really actually didn't think it would happen, you know.
CHIDEYA: Well, Larissa, thank you so much.
Ms. LEWIS: Thank you for calling.
CHIDEYA: Again, that was Larissa Lewis of Pecos, New Mexico.
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