Friday, November 13, 2009
New program will ease rising electric costs
Appalachian Power Co.'s partnership will benefit low-income families in Virginia.
The latest from The Ticker blog
Appalachian Power Co. acknowledges that the rising cost of electricity comes at a rocky time for many households and businesses struggling to weather an economic storm.
On Thursday, on the cusp of winter, Appalachian announced a new fundraising partnership to benefit low-income families in Virginia.
The company, a subsidiary of American Electric Power, has teamed up its Neighbor-to-Neighbor program with Dollar Energy Fund, a nonprofit organization described in a joint news release as "one of the largest hardship funds in the United States." The fund, which operates in six states, already has partnerships with several other utilities.
Todd Burns, an Appalachian spokesman, said Dollar Energy's expertise in raising and distributing funds to help pay electric bills for qualifying households will improve the effectiveness of Neighbor-to-Neighbor, which customers build through tax-deductible donations. AEP stockholders and Appalachian are contributing $500,000 to the fund.
Neighbor-to-Neighbor will now operate year-round as opposed to just the winter months.
A family of four earning a gross income up to $33,075 a year is income eligible for the program, which applies energy grants directly to customers' bills. To qualify, households must have made a sincere effort to pay their electric bills in the past 90 days and have a back balance.
Donations can be made by check enclosed in monthly bills or online at www.dollarenergyfund.org. All donations to the Neighbor-to-Neighbor program, now administered by Dollar Energy Fund, will assist low-income families residing in Virginia.
According to Appalachian, since Neighbor-to-Neighbor launched in 1983, utility customers and stockholders have contributed about $5.4 million to help pay the energy bills of nearly 82,000 low-income customers in West Virginia and Virginia.
Eligibility guidelines and application instructions can be found at www.dollarenergyfund.org. Information about Neighbor-to-Neighbor can be found at (800) 956-4237 or www.appalachianpower.com.
