HARRISBURG — The Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program has helped more than 50,000 Pennsylvania residents with their water and sewer bills, including more than 70 in Bradford.
And members of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission are urging Congress to support funding for a permanent program to do the same. Despite the established need and success of the program, there is no funding for the program in congressional appropriations bills for fiscal year 2024.
“Water is an essential utility service for which there is no substitute. Communities across Pennsylvania rely on water systems to provide safe drinking water, nourish our families, run our homes and businesses, and protect public health,” noted all five PUC commissioners in a recent letter to Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation.
The Low-Income Household Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP) is the first federal program created to exclusively assist low-income families with their water and wastewater bills.
More than 52,000 LIHWAP grants have provided nearly $44 million in assistance to Pennsylvania families since the program was created in 2021 in response to financial challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic, which unveiled the lack of financial resources and aid available to populations of low-income water and wastewater customers.
The PUC letter urges support for LIHWAP funding in the 2024 fiscal year, along with a mechanism to permanently fund a program like LIHWAP for water and wastewater customers.
“LIHWAP has proven to be a successful program in getting assistance to those who need it the most,” the PUC letter stressed. “If the LIHWAP program lapses, there is no question that many will suffer.”
The program was put to good use for customers of the Bradford City Water Authority and Bradford Sanitary Authority. The program both assisted low-income residents who were behind on their water and sewer bills, and helped the authorities with outstanding delinquencies.
The residents applied to the Department of Human Services for consideration. If approved, a one-time payment of up to $2,500 was submitted to the utility on the customer’s behalf.
In June 2022, the water authority had noted that 67 LIHWAP payments had been made year-to-date on water accounts, totaling $13,711.07.
Officials noted at the time that the project was very helpful for residents in danger of losing water and sewer service for lack of payment.
