Contacts:
Anne Lupardus, Office of the Governor, 608-261-2162
Proposal Would Give Working Families Immediate Help to Pay Heating Bills
Governor Jim Doyle today urged legislators to approve a proposal that would provide working Wisconsin families $6 million in immediate, emergency energy assistance. The Governor’s package, which he announced in his State of the State Address last week, is expected to be considered tomorrow by the Joint Finance Committee.
“All over Wisconsin, working families are struggling to afford their heating bill this month,” Governor Doyle said. “In a budget of $52 billion, this bill isn’t going to break the bank – but it will provide thousands of our citizens with the help they need to get through the winter. It’s the heart of the heating season, so I hope Republicans and Democrats will move quickly to approve this desperately needed help. Wisconsin’s working families deserve nothing less.”
The Governor’s Emergency Energy Assistance Package would provide immediate assistance to working families making up to $40,000 – or about 200 percent of the poverty line for a family of four. Currently, only families making less than 150 percent of the poverty line are eligible for assistance. The Department of Administration estimates that a typical family who applies for this new aid would receive about $200 to pay their heating bills this winter, and about 30,000 families would utilize the program.
Last week, the non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau reported that the state will likely collect $93 million more in revenue than was previously anticipated, due to growth in the economy combined with steps the Doyle Administration has taken to find efficiencies in the Medicaid program. The Governor believes the lion’s share of that money should be set aside, with just $6 million dedicated to this emergency energy assistance.
“We’ve worked hard to reduce spending and grow our economy, and it’s working – revenues will be $93 million higher than anyone expected before,” Governor Doyle said. “While the Legislature shouldn’t go on a spending spree, providing this urgently needed help to working families is not only affordable, it’s the right thing to do.”
In a letter to Joint Finance Committee Co-Chairs Sen. Scott Fitzerald and Rep. Dean Kaufert, Department of Administration Secretary Steve Bablitch today detailed the proposal and asked committee members to attach the Governor’s Emergency Energy Assistance Package to energy legislation being considered by the committee tomorrow, SB 381.
