The Colorado Department of Human Services operates a LEAP fuel assistance program to provide help for at-need individuals. In order to qualify for the program, individuals must be residents of Colorado and be directly responsible for paying for their home heating costs. Colorado has led the way nationally with a number of initiatives to improve the overall reach and extent of these programs.
The adjusted scales for qualification are based upon the Federally-defined poverty levels: households can quality by earning less than 185% of the Federal limit, scaled according tot he number of individuals in the household. Each year, the government updates these requirements at the beginning of November, which coincides with the beginning of the application period.
The state provides applications for at-risk individuals and any state resident is eligible to apply for assistance. Additionally, there are a variety of private assistance programs which operate under the umbrella of Energy Outreach Colorado. The organization aims to provide affordable heating and cooling to all families within Colorado. Operating for over two decades, the organization helps to provide direct funding for low income families to pay their winter heating bills.
Energy Outreach Colorado operates a series of local branches which provide grants to low-income households, as well as providing important Energy Hog efficiency programs. Efficiency information is distributed through public advertising, school advocacy and community education. The Home Energy Investigation Program helps students to examine potential energy savings in their own homes and schools.
Last year, the program donated over $2 million to assist over 90,000 low-income households in the state, which went directly to helping to pay for energy bills. The program also provides extensive grants to improve energy efficiency and weatherization standards for individuals, families and non-profit organizations. Importantly, the organization also advocates for the rights of low income families, providing testimony to the Public Utilities Commission and working to pass a House Bill which expanded state funding for low income energy programs.
The bill, signed into law by Governor Bill Owens, and sponsored by State Representatives Veiga and Buescher, extending new funding rules through the 2012 winter season, improving outreach and assistance for low income families. As a state with a strong progressive tradition, Colorado has aimed to coordinate its environmental and low-income assistance programs to allow families to benefit from improvements in the energy efficiency of their homes, greening the state’s environmental impacts through tax abatement and rebate programs.
Colorado opened a new Governor’s Energy Office to provide assistance for a variety of households and businesses to improve their energy efficiency. Partnering with Energy Star, the state has increased rebates for households and businesses which invest in energy efficient home improvements. These improvements not only improve environmental impacts, but also result in a lowering of energy bills, especially during peak use seasons. The tax incentives for utilizing solar, wind and energy efficient options provide an opportunity for households to profit from improving their home. Individual rebates for insulation upgrades and air sealing services further open doors to profitable adjustments to home improvements.
