Governor Snyder Asks Congress to Sustain LIHEAP Funding

DETROIT, Aug. 5, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Coalition to Keep Michigan Warm (CTKMW) today thanked Governor Rick Snyder (R-MI) for his leadership and support in defending the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Governor Snyder sent a letter this week to the leadership of a key Congressional committee urging for sustained funding for LIHEAP.

Earlier this year, the President proposed, and Congress is considering, a 50 percent budget cut to the federal energy assistance program that last year helped more than 615,000 low-income households across Michigan. In his letter addressed to the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies, Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Ranking Member Richard Shelby (R-AL), the Governor Snyder asked the committee to reject these proposed cuts.  

"I concur with the bipartisan June 10, 2011, letter from Michigan Senators Carl Levin and Debbie Stabenow, along with 36 other Senators, sent to you requesting that FY 2012 funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) remain no less than the current level," wrote Governor Snyder on July 22, 2011. "Were this funding lower than the current amount, Michigan would have to either reduce the number of eligible recipients, or reduce the level of assistance to a point that would not cover one month of heating from this coming winter. As you know, winters in Michigan can be brutally cold."

Earlier this week, CTKMW participated in LIHEAP Action Day in Washington, DC, meeting with members of the Michigan Delegation asking for sustained funding of LIHEAP.

"We appreciate Governor Snyder and the entire Michigan Delegation's leadership on LIHEAP," said Sharon Theroux, co-chairwoman of the Coalition to Keep Michigan Warm. "While Washington remains divided on many issues, leaders from both parties support and understand the need to appropriately fund this critical program that benefits many. The bipartisan leadership of our delegation knows that that a $2.5 billion dollar cut at the federal level will translate to an estimated $120 million reduction in funds coming to Michigan. With our state still reeling from the effects of the economic meltdown, those cuts will have a disproportionate impact on the 'new poor' in our state."

The Coalition to Keep Michigan Warm's membership is made up of a diverse group of organizations, including energy providers, state governmental bodies, nonprofit energy assistance providers, and individual supporters with direct or indirect involvement in low-income household energy issues. To learn more and support the efforts of the Coalition, visit www.coalitiontokeepmichiganwarm.com.  

SOURCE Coalition to Keep Michigan Warm