WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King today announced that Maine will receive $34,847,767 in Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) assistance. The funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) will help low-income households and seniors with their energy bills.

“The long, cold Maine winter can present low-income families and seniors with the impossible choice between paying for heat and paying for other necessities like food or medicine,” said Senator Collins and King in a joint statement. “Thanks to the LIHEAP program, Mainers across our state will be able to keep their homes warm without having to make that choice. This important investment will support some of our most vulnerable citizens this winter.” 

Earlier this month, Senators Collins and Jack Reed (D-RI) led a bipartisan letter also signed by Senator King to HHS Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell, urging her to release LIHEAP funds without delay and at as high a level as possible. Preserving LIHEAP funding has been a continued priority for both Senators Collins and King, both of whom have worked together to oppose recent attempts to scale back the funding appropriated for this critical program.

LIHEAP is the main federal program that helps low-income households and seniors with their energy bills, providing vital assistance during both the cold winter and hot summer months.  LIHEAP households are among the most vulnerable in the country.  

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