HACAP weatherizes more homes this winter

    The number of homes available for subsidized weatherization is expected to double this coming winter, according to HACAP Operations Manager RenElla Crawford. Crawford said that between 40 and 50 homes in Washington County will receive federal assistance for home insulation this coming winter. That is double the figure of 22 homes that were weatherized in 2008-2009 and quadruple the number of 11 weatherized in 2007-2008.

    Crawford said the extra money for the weatherization program was made possible by the stimulus bill ? formally known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act ? that was passed by the U.S. Congress and signed by President Obama in February.

    The subsidized weatherization program is available to low-income households as a way of reducing their heating bills. The program is part of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which is funded by the federal government and administered by the state.

    HACAP, which stands for Hawkeye Area Community Action Program, also provides direct assistance to low-income households by paying a portion of their heating bills. Crawford said that in the fiscal year 2009, HACAP provided a total of roughly $312,000 to 579 households in the county. Crawford said that the assistance HACAP provides makes a world of difference in the lives of the people who receive it.

    ?Most of the people we help would be homeless because they couldn?t maintain their utilities,? said Crawford. ?A lot of families have to choose between paying their rent and paying their utilities during the winter months. Many times, utilities come last. We?ve seen utility bills as high as $2,000 because the family hasn?t been able to pay it for months.?

    LIHEAP also helps families to increase energy efficiency by replacing old furnaces. The program was responsible for replacing eight furnaces in 2008. This past year, LIHEAP replaced 14 furnaces.

    Home heating assistance is far from the only thing HACAP provides to low-income families in the county. HACAP also offers a food pantry that has been getting a lot of use in the last year and even in the last month.

    In 2008, HACAP provided food boxes to approximately 70 to 80 families per month in 2008. Crawford said that 109 families used the food pantry this October.  

For the complete story, see the Nov. 18 edition of the Washington Evening Journal.