Long stretch of wintry weather puts focus on those who can't afford heat
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Carl Howe, of Mt. Lebanon, had his gas turned off in October.
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Carl Howe spent last week's cold snap on his couch, huddled under two blankets with his winter coat on and a space heater aimed at him.
He left the water running so it did not freeze. His feet were red from the cold. He has not bathed because to do so would mean stripping down in his house where the temperature is below freezing and washing with cold water because his water heater runs on gas.
Mr. Howe, 59, of Mt. Lebanon, had his gas shut off this fall.
As of December there are 17,744 other homes in the state without heat, according to the state Public Utilities Commission.
"I was naive to think 'OK, my gas is off, but come October, they're going to turn it back on because they're not going to allow anyone to freeze,'" he said. "I'm mad at myself."
Now that the heat is off, it is much harder for Mr. Howe, who has cerebral palsy, to get it turned back on.
The law used to read that utilities were not allowed to turn off any service for nonpayment without the prior approval of the PUC after Nov. 1. That is no longer the case.
The law, part of Chapter 14 of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Code, says utilities have to give customers only 10 days notice before turning off their electricity, gas or water. It's a change that went into effect in 2005 based on a law passed after utilities complained that other ratepayers were seeing increases because of the numbers of unpaid accounts.
Jennifer Kocher, a commission spokeswoman, said it is important for people not to ignore termination notices, particularly in the cold. If service is terminated in the winter, utility companies have 24 hours after the account is paid in full and other conditions set by the utility are met to turn it back on. She said in some cases, shut-off notices can be avoided -- for instance, if the residents are at 250 percent of the poverty line, which is about $4,400 a month for a family of four, but the onus is on the customers to let the utility know they fall within the low-income guidelines to save their heat.
Ms. Kocher said if a utility company tried to contact the account holder and was not informed that the customer was low-income, the account could be terminated.
State Sen. Jim Ferlo, D-Highland Park, has been working to try to change the cutoff requirements for utilities during the winter months since the Public Utility Code changed in 2005, but hasn't succeeded.
"It's outrageous," Mr. Ferlo said about the winter shut offs. He is reintroducing legislation this session to eliminate the winter shut offs without approval and he wants to change the requirements for getting utilities turned back on so the companies can no longer require payment in full and a large deposit on future service.
"These are public utilities," he said, adding that they are given an area in which they are the only source of a service. "They are guaranteed a profitable rate of return."
Ms. Kocher said the commission has been trying to educate customers to contact the utilities before their service is shut off.
"We worry that people will ignore the notice or think they are low-income so they can't be shut off, or that the company won't cut their utility off because it is too cold," Ms. Kocher said. "We want [customers] to talk to utilities so [the companies] are aware of their situation."
In 2008, 296,000 people statewide had their electricity or gas turned off, up by 50,000 from 2007, according to PUC figures.
There are programs available for people who have trouble paying their heating bills.
For instance, the Dollar Energy Fund has distributed $1 million this winter for energy assistance in Pennsylvania, including nearly $500,000 on 1,226 grants made in Allegheny County, $82,000 for 197 grants in Beaver County, $35,000 for 106 grants in Butler County, $47,000 for 127 grants in Washington County and $79,000 for 235 grants in Westmoreland County.
Erin O'Donnell, the spokeswoman for the Dollar Energy Fund, said there have been more than 3,200 grants for assistance this winter, with an average grant of $356. Ms. O'Donnell said in order to get a grant, a customer has to have shown a sincere effort to have paid the utility or paid $150 in the last 90 days, or $100 for senior citizens.
"If there's a problem with the utility bills, it's generally not the only problem in the house," Ms. O'Donnell said.
In addition to the Dollar Energy Fund, there is the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (known as LIHEAP), which is available from the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare. The amount of assistance is based on income and family size. For instance, a single person qualifies for the program if his income is less than $23,110, and a family of five qualifies if its income is less than $51,554.
Qualified applicants do not need to be on public assistance, they do not have to have an unpaid heating bill, and they can rent or own their home.
Mr. Howe does not qualify for any of the aid.
He is married, although his wife does not live with him the bills are in her name. Though Mr. Howe has not worked since 1998, he does not receive disability assistance because, he said, while he is able to work, no one will hire him because of his cerebral palsy and because he has trouble keeping his thoughts to himself.
He is keenly aware of how dangerous it can be to live without heat. Last year his next door neighbor was found dead in his own unheated home. The medical examiner's office determined the cause of death to be pneumonia.
"I'm very frustrated with the whole thing," he said.
He said the gas company wanted $645 to turn the gas back on. He has no regular source of income, though his family has provided some help. Even if he had the money, getting to the utility office with the money and paperwork is quite a hurdle.
He has turned to ACORN -- the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now -- for help.
"First I have to make about 1,000 phone calls," Maryellen Hayden, the chief organizer for ACORN's Pittsburgh office, told him on Tuesday.
Mr. Howe said he had already made about 990 calls himself.
"But there is something to be said for the power of ACORN," she said. ACORN does not have the money to get the gas turned back on, Ms. Hayden said, but has been working to connect Mr. Howe with someone who does.
Ms. Hayden brought Mr. Howe to a luncheon celebrating the presidential inauguration. He had to be helped up a snowy hillside to get to her car, but he was able to warm up and eat a meal. He is normally dependent on food from a food pantry.
By evening he was back in his house, under the blankets listening to the radio, his only source of news other than the telephone.
On Friday, Mr. Howe was still without heat, grateful for the break in the weather -- and preparing for the next cold snap.
First Published January 25, 2009 12:00 am
