American Gas - November 2011 - (Page 2)

PrEsIdEnt’s MEssAgE LIHEAP and the Budget Crunch Yes, Congress needs to balance the books, but in making its budget choices it should never forget that lives hang in the balance as well. s I mentioned last month in this space, AGA has been proactively involved in calling for our national leaders to put aside the partisanship and take bold action on reducing—and eventually balancing—our federal budget as a way to restore America’s faith and confidence in our government, our fiscal soundness and our economic future. Our commitment to that goal remains strong, but so is our commitment to the basic human needs of the poorest among us—needs that our member companies see first-hand during the coldest months of the winter when low-income families struggle to pay their monthly heating bills to keep themselves and their children warm. Congress recognized that basic human need long ago when it established the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which provides funding that allows poor families to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer, and today approximately 44 million households qualify for LIHEAP’s funding. Unfortunately, even two years ago when LIHEAP was funded at its highest level of $5.1 billion there was only enough money to serve one in five eligible households, and today Congress is proposing cutting LIHEAP by at least $1.5 billion. Even in good economic times this would be a catastrophe for millions of low-income Americans, but in today’s economy the effect will be devastating. Winter is coming, which means that those 44 million LIHEAP-eligible households will again face the choice of heating their home or paying for other necessities such as food, clothing and medicine. Only this winter there will be less LIHEAP assistance to help them avoid that choice. A DAve mccurDy President and ceO dmccurdy@aga.org Again, we understand that today’s budget realities demand sacrifice from all Americans, but Congress must understand that the level of LIHEAP funding is going down at the same time the number of low-income Americans is going up. Which is why AGA and our members—who themselves raise more than $2.4 billion annually to help their low-income customers pay their natural gas bills—are asking Congress to make LIHEAP a funding priority as it decides on 2012 appropriations. There are several reasons why Congress should re-think its cuts to LIHEAP, including the fact that there actually is an economic argument for more LIHEAP funding. According to a recent study by economists Alan Binder of Princeton University and Mark Zandi at Moody’s Analytics, for every LIHEAP dollar paid, $1.13 is generated in economic activity. There is also a compelling safety argument. Families unable to pay their heating or cooling bills will often resort to dangerous heating alternatives—heat from makeshift fires for example—that can result in significant property damage, serious injury and even death. Yet the most important argument for prioritizing LIHEAP funding is this: Whereas a budget cut that threatens someone’s livelihood may be justified, a cut that threatens someone’s life is not, and it is a fact that more budget cuts to LIHEAP, especially during a cold winter, can mean more fatalities. Yes, Congress needs to balance the books, but in making its budget choices it should never forget that lives hang in the balance as well. 2 november 2011 AmericAn GAs

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of American Gas - November 2011

American Gas - November 2011
Contents
President’s Message
In the Know
In the News
Safety First
Talking Energy
Marketplace
Saving LIHEAP
Company Profiles
Places to Be
Noteworthies
Jobline
Advertisers’ Index
Facts on Gas

American Gas - November 2011