Bay Area Advocates Alarmed by Mass Firings at Federal Low-Income Energy Program

Source: KQED |  By Nisa Khan

Bay Area consumer advocates are sounding alarms after the Trump administration this month fired the entire staff running a federal program that helps low-income Americans afford to heat and cool their homes. The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) distributes federal funds to help households with their energy needs through services such as providing one-time financial assistance to pay bills, offering emergency help when utilities are disconnected or upgrading homes to make them more energy-efficient.

The Utility Reform Network (TURN), a consumer advocacy group based in Oakland, signed a letter with 220 other groups last week demanding that Congress reinstate the laid-off federal employees. “If there’s no one working the program, then if you apply, there’s no one going to process that application,” said Lee Trotman, a spokesperson for TURN. “This is a crisis at the federal level. And it’s going to affect Californians.”