Single Parent Utility Bill Assistance Programs Keep Your Family Safe And Warm

After ensuring safe shelter and food for your family, securing basic utility service is of utmost importance. Electric lights, heat, cooking appliances, and hot and cold water are key to providing your entire household a safe, healthy existence. Single moms and dads, struggling to raise their young and teenage children on a single income, often have difficulty meeting the rising costs of those energy bills, but there is single parent utility bill assistance available.

LIHEAP, or the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, is funded by the United States Department of Health and Human Services. This program offers assistance to low income families to help them pay their gas, electric, and water bills. This may be an ongoing assistance plan or simply help with emergency needs. You can learn more about LIHEAP at acf.hhs.org.

Catholic Charities is a non profit organization that is affiliated with the Catholic Church. They offer a broad range of programs to families in need, and this includes offering assistance for heating bills, telephone, and so on. Single mothers and fathers struggling to make ends meet can find Catholic Charities at ccbjax.org to learn more about their services and how to apply.

Most counties throughout the United States harbor a human services department. These departments offer a wide range of community support programs, and can provide emergency assistance for families who need help meeting their financial obligations. You can find the contact information for your appropriate county by checking the municipal website. They will be able to stop disconnect action and supply emergency funds; each department has a different set of rules and qualification requirements.

An excellent resource for help in a number of different areas is the Single Parent Alliance of America. While they offer no funding themselves, they strive to offer single parents with a broad range of legitimate options. At spaoa.org, you will find information about a wide range of programs and agencies available that can help you manage your utility bills and how to apply for their services.

Before you panic over utility bills you cannot pay, it is wise to talk with a representative from your utility company. Each company will offer their own solutions to help you keep your utilities on. For example, in metro Detroit, DTE Energy offers their Shutoff Protection Program. This program provides a few choices of payment plans that can be somewhat catered to your ability to pay. As long as you adhere to the guidelines, your power is protected. For more information, you can visit dteenergy.com or the website for your specific energy company.

In conjunction with the plans offered by your utility company, most cities and surrounding areas will harbor programs designed by non profit organizations in conjunction with the service provider. DTE Energy in Detroit, for example, works with a group called THAW, the Heat and Warmth Fund, which operates on charitable donations and offers emergency assistance to low income families for use toward their energy bills. Single parents who are working to keep their heads above water financially can benefit greatly from this program. You can learn more at thawfund.org.