FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 23, 2008

Columbus, OH -- Lieutenant Governor Lee Fisher today announced that qualified Ohioans threatened with losing their heating services have until April 30 to apply for assistance through the Home Energy Assistance Winter Crisis Program (E-HEAP). The Ohio Department of Development previously extended the emergency program to April 30 to give families extra time to access these funds.

"Individuals threatened with losing their heating source have one more week to apply for assistance," said Lt. Governor Fisher, who also serves as Director of the Ohio Department of Development. "These federal funds enabled us to help many families this season, and I encourage Ohioans who are eligible for this assistance to apply."

The Home Energy Assistance Winter Crisis Program, administered by the Ohio Department of Development's Office of Community Services, provides assistance once per heating season to eligible households that have been disconnected, are being threatened with disconnection, or have less than a 10-day supply of bulk fuel. More than 180,000 households have received benefits totaling nearly $40 million during the 2007-2008 program year.

Qualifying for E-HEAP is dependent on the size of the household and the total gross household income over the past 13 weeks, which must be at or below 175 percent of the 2007-2008 federal poverty guidelines listed below:

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Media contacts: Kelly Schlissberg at (614) 466-4133 or Melissa Vince at (614) 466-6619