Senator Collins Announces Early Release of More Than $38 Million in Federal Home Heating Aid for Maine
U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-Maine), Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced Friday, October 9, that the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Community Services will release more than $38 million in Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funding to help low-income Maine households and seniors on fixed incomes afford their energy bills — one of the earliest releases in the program’s history. The funding includes $36,675,395 for the State of Maine and $1,408,729 for Maine tribes. The tribal allocation includes $457,771 for the Pleasant Point Passamaquoddy Tribe, $316,098 for the Indian Township Passamaquoddy Tribe, $303,530 for the Penobscot Nation, and $165,665 each for the Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians and the Mi’kmaq Nation. The announcement follows Collins’ conversations this week with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought, in which she urged the administration to expedite the release. “With home heating oil costs soaring, many Maine families and seniors on limited incomes are facing the prospect of extraordinarily high heating bills this winter. That is why I urged the Administration to expedite the release of this critical assistance, and why I fought so hard to protect and increase funding for LIHEAP. I am pleased that these funds are being released to help Mainers afford to heat their homes this winter without having to choose between staying warm and paying for other basic necessities,” said Senator Collins. The early release comes as Maine families face record heating costs. The Mills administration has said home heating oil hit a record average of $6.02 per gallon, and Maine — where long winters and oil-heat dependence make winter fuel a major household expense — is bracing for one of its most expensive heating seasons. LIHEAP provides direct assistance with heating and cooling costs to an estimated 6.2 million households nationwide each year; in Maine, households received $41.6 million through the program last year. The program has strong bipartisan support in Congress, but the Trump administration has repeatedly proposed eliminating it in budget requests and last year dismissed staffers working on the program. Senators Collins, Jack Reed (D-RI), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) led a bipartisan effort that secured $4.045 billion for LIHEAP in fiscal year 2026 — a $20 million increase — overriding the administration’s proposed elimination. The release is also landing in the middle of a hard-fought reelection campaign for Collins. She raised the issue during her televised Senate debate this week against Democratic challenger Troy Jackson, who has called for more LIHEAP funding and expanded eligibility, while Collins touted her talks with the administration to secure early relief and her push to expand weatherization assistance.
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: w_lemay 摄，CC BY-SA 2.0（Wikimedia Commons）
