Energy help soon available on Web

People struggling to pay heating bills will soon be able to use the Internet to access help.

Spokane Neighborhood Action Programs, which administers federal and local energy assistance funds, will start accepting appointments for its energy services through www.snapwa.org, in November. The move could ease congestion for thousands of callers stymied by busy phone lines.

“It’s a very large volume (of callers) that hits all at one time. That will help take some of the load off the phones,” said Margaret Belote, director of SNAP energy programs.

With natural gas and heating oil costs rising sharply and electricity increases on the table, agencies serving the poor are bracing for increased need and hoping for another warm winter.

“If it’s a very cold and very nasty winter, we fear we won’t have the amount of money to keep the vulnerable and low-income people of the community warm,” said Ron Hardin, development coordinator for SNAP.

To accommodate the growing need, SNAP added another phone line and six intake workers. Starting today, callers can set appointments by phone, on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

In North Idaho, help is administered through Community Action Partnership. Residents of Benewah, Boundary, Shoshone, Kootenai and Bonner counties who need emergency help can apply starting Tuesday. Low-income residents in non-emergency situations can apply starting Dec. 1.

“We’ve already had a lot of calls up until now. We’ve heard a lot of comments about rate increases and the costs going up on just about everything,” said Kim Lang, services coordinator for CAP.

Avista Utilities on Wednesday won state approval for a 24 percent increase in natural gas rates for Washington. A similar increase is expected in Idaho in the next several days. Avista has also proposed increasing electricity rates for Washington residential customers by 9 percent. If approved, rates would climb after Jan. 1.

Spokane Valley Community Center has scrambled to prevent utility shut-offs all year. In addition to SNAP’s on-site office, the center provides its own one-time help to prevent utility shut-offs.

Most of the $53,000 in emergency funds distributed so far this year have gone for utility bills, said Mollie Dalpae, director of SVCC.

“That’s more than we spent all last year and we haven’t even hit the cold season,” she said.

Half the people needing emergency assistance are Spokane Valley residents who’ve never sought help there before, said Sheila Morley, SVCC emergency assistance case manager. While costs are rising, most clients are on fixed incomes or have experienced a loss or decrease in income, she said.

“I have a lot of people say, ‘I have to make a choice. Am I going to put gas in my car to get to work or pay my electricity bill?’ ” Morley said.

Belote said about 34,000 Spokane County residents qualify for help. Last year, SNAP’s energy programs served 10,313 of those households.

Eligibility and amount of assistance vary from state to state and are determined by factors including income, number of people in the household and heating costs averaged over a year. To qualify for assistance in Washington, families must be at or below 125 percent of the federal poverty level. For a family of four, that’s below $2,016 a month, after taxes.

Although the exact amount of federal funding hasn’t yet been established, Belote said, SNAP received preliminary funding (about 70 percent of last year’s money) to get the 2006 energy season started. More money is expected after Congress decides on funding.

SNAP also administers a local fuel fund called Project Share. Project Share is supported by donations from customers of local utility companies, including Avista, Inland Power and Light Co. and others. The fund helps those who may not qualify based on state requirements, but have experienced a recent job loss, illness or other financial challenge that’s created a heating emergency.

Because energy costs are a national issue in the forefront of the media, Belote is hopeful lawmakers will maintain or increase funding. Last budget season, SNAP received $2.9 million in federal money and another $1.6 million provided by a surcharge on utility services.

She’s encouraged that Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire is asking the state Legislature to approve an additional $7.6 million in state funds for energy assistance.

“My projection is optimistic,” Belote said. “I believe the worst case scenario will be last year’s funding.”