Minnesotans can get more heating bill assistance this winter

The state has more than $125 million budgeted to help more than 125,000 families pay bills as temps plummet
Minnesota state leaders have now received $129 million to help hundreds of thousands of families pay their winter heating bills.
Mark Burger of Blackhawk Propane delivers propane to a farm house on January 24, 2014 near Clinton, Wisconsin. Minnesota state leaders have now received $129 million to help hundreds of thousands of families pay their winter heating bills. Photo credit (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Minnesotans who receive energy assistance during the winter to help pay utility bills to stay warm can now get more money thanks to federal legislation passed this fall.

According to the Minnesota Energy Assistance Program, a $1 billion federal resolution passed in September upped Minnesota’s total energy assistance budget to $129 million for this winter heating season. That means the allotment per family is up to $1,500. The state plans to help about 127,000 families this winter.

“For heating oil, for example, the average has risen to $3,000, up from $1,900,” said Michael Schmitz, director of the program. “It can be quite expensive to heat your home in Minnesota.”

Schmitz said a family of four with a household income of $58,000 or less can qualify for the assistance, and they have until May 31, 2023 to sign up.

Click here for more information.

Featured Image Photo Credit: (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)