Penquis Has $1.9M in Heat Funds for Residents of 3 Maine Counties

Residents of three Maine counties are encouraged to apply for a portion of nearly $2 million in heating assistance available now from Penquis.

Which Counties are Included?

The announcement was made this week that Penquis has received over $1.9 million in LD3 funding, which will help some Mainers pay their heating bills. The funds are being distributed in $800 increments, which are being paid directly to energy vendors on behalf of income eligible households. After the recent cold snap that had everyone cranking up their heat, this money will really come in handy to help get through the winter.

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Residents of three counties may be able to take advantage of the funding:

• Penobscot
• Knox
• Piscataquis

Who is Eligible?

Eligibility requirements include:

• Households who don't qualify for the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) and are below the 300% of the 2022-23 Federal Poverty Level. For instance, a household of 4 people could have income up to $83,250 and still be eligible for the $800.
• Households that have never applied for HEAP.
• And households that applied for HEAP and have exhausted their HEAP and ECIP benefit are also eligible to fill out an LD3 application.

Penquis officials say this is not a difficult application to complete. In fact, household members will be able to self-declare their income over the phone while completing the application with a member of the staff.

Other information they'll need to provide will include:

• The names of all the adults in the household.
• The number of people in the household.
• A delivery address for the fuel.
• Their mailing address.
• Their phone number.
• Household gross income.
• Type of fuel needed.
• Preferred fuel vendor and energy account number.

How Do We Apply?

The best way to apply for this is over the phone by calling Joanne Whitney at 802-3042 or Sheila Scully at 802-3012.