LOW-INCOME ENERGY NETWORK

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LOW-INCOME ENERGY NETWORK

• LIEN/AHAC Conference
• Helping Low Income Consumers
• Sarah Blackstock
• Income Security Advocacy Centre

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Presentation outline

• LIEN pyramid
• Energy conservation programs
• Rate and emergency assistance programs

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LIENs approach to low-income energy conservation
assistance
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Benefits to Low-Income Households

• lower energy bills
• improve comfort/quality of life
• ensure access to electricity and heat
• reduce risk of homelessness
• allow people with low incomes to participate in
  the Culture of Conservation

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Benefits for Society

• reduce demand for emergency assistance
• reduce need for public expenditures
• reduce poverty
• reduce pollution
• reduce need for new generation facilities

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LIEN model

• for low-income home-owners and tenants who pay
  for utilities directly
• based on pyramid
• Brantford Powers pilot project Conserving
  Homes based on LIEN model

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Energy conservation

• Ontario Energy Board
• OEB encouraged Local Distribution Companies
  (LDCs) to develop low-income Conservation and
  Demand Management (CDM)
• not mandatory
• 33 LDCs spending approx. 9.6M

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Energy conservation

• Social Housing Services Corporation (SHSC)
• energy costs are 40 of annual operating budgets,
  400M/year
• Energy Management Program

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Energy conservation

• Discretionary benefits for OW/ODSP clients
• one-time benefit
• maximum of 50
• to pay for pre-approved low-cost energy
  conservation measure

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Energy Conservation

• Conservation Bureau
• Minister of Energy gives OPA/Conservation Bureau
  responsibility for low-income and social housing
  CDM in October 2005
• target of 100MW reduction, equivalent of the
  energy consumption of 33 000 homes

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Energy Conservation

• EnerGuide for Low-Income Households (EGLIGH)
• cancelled by Harper govt in recent budget
• 500M, 5-year program
• available to homeowners, multiple-unit buildings
  and rooming houses
• for retrofits such as draft-proofing, heating
  system upgrades and window replacements
• Green Communities leading lobbying campaign to
  save EGLIGH

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Rate and emergency assistance

• Federal Energy Cost Benefit
• one-time benefit provided in Jan 06
• 250 to families receiving NCBS
• 125 to seniors receiving GIS
• 250 to senior couples where both receive GIS
• 3.1M payments made

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Rate and emergency assistance

• Provincial Emergency Energy Fund
• STW/LIEN worked with ComSoc to establish fund in
  2004
• fund doubled to 4.2M (April 12/06 announcement)
• 500 000 to First Nations members on reserve
• managed by municipalities and the Ontario Native
  Welfare Administrators Association on behalf of
  First Nations

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Rate and emergency assistance

• Provincial Emergency Energy Fund cont
• to help pay for arrears, security deposits,
  reconnections
• paid directly to energy providers
• can access fund once, unless there are
  exceptional circumstances
• amount provided depends on factors such as number
  of months energy has been disconnected and
  reconnection fees

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Rate and emergency assistance

• Ontario Home Electricity Relief program
• legislation introduced in April 06 to provide
  low-income families with a one-time payment
• up to 120 per family
• to be eligible families have to file 2005 tax
  returns by Dec. 31, 2006
• 1.5M families will be eligible

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Rate and emergency assistance

• Social assistance
• SA recipients who pay for heating costs directly
  can receive assistance a part of their shelter
  allowance
• Community Start-up and Maintainenace Benefit

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Rate and emergency assistance

• Charities
• Share the Warmth (not in all communities)
• Winter Warmth (United Way, Toronto Hydro and
  Enbridge)
• municipal programs
• churches
• varying levels of assistance
• varying critieria

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Being warm, cool and green

• Role of government
• Role of utilities
• Role of activists