President Barack Obama's proposal to cut in half a $5 billion energy assistance program for the poor and elderly could be the last straw for some New Orleans area families struggling to recover from Hurricane Katrina, the BP oil spill and the global recession, according to public officials from across the region. "Yes, we need fiscal responsibility. Yes, we...
President Barack Obama's proposal to cut in half a $5 billion energy assistance program for the poor and elderly could be the last straw for some New Orleans area families struggling to recover from Hurricane Katrina, the BP oil spill and the global recession, according to public officials from across the region.
"Yes, we need fiscal responsibility. Yes, we need to balance the federal budget," Jefferson Parish President John Young at a news conference Friday in Marrero. "But not on the backs of people who are the most vulnerable and can least afford it."
Young was joined by officials from Orleans, St. Bernard, Plaquemines and St. Charles parishes in opposing cuts to the program, which provided $44 million to keep power running at 111,000 households across the state last year.
Joan Diaz, community services director for St. Charles Parish, said her office is averaging 40 applications per week for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program or LIHEAP,
"Our schedule is fully booked into the summer," she said. "This program is a lifeline for struggling families and we need to protect it."
The average assistance is about $400, which is paid directly to power companies.
"Many of these people are one paycheck away from being homeless," said Melonie Hall, customer service director for Entergy New Orleans. "This program allows them to stay in their homes and continue to have electricity."
Marrero resident Cynthia Hunt said she has struggled to find steady employment since Katrina and got a notice last week that her power would be disconnected.
"If not for LIHEAP, I'd be sitting in the dark today," she said.
Supporters of the proposed cut have emphasized that it would simply reduce the program's funding level to what it was in 2008 before Obama took office. But opponents, including many vocal critics in Obama's own party, have noted that current funding levels enable the program to serve just one in five families who qualify.
"This is not a Republican issue. This is not a Democrat issue, or an issue of race," said Jedidiah Jackson, director of Jefferson Parish's Community Action Program. "This is an issue of survival for those families who are effected."
Obama has proposed cutting $2.5 billion from the $5 billion program as part of his 2012 budget. House Republicans passed a bill almost entirely along party lines to cut $400 million from the program this year. But the bill was defeated by Democrats in the Senate this month.
Byron Williams, director of public services for Plaquemines Parish, said he was surprised Obama proposed the cuts.
"The people who are benefitting from this are the people who put him in office," Williams said in an interview before the news conference. "You can't bite the hand that feeds you."
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Paul Rioux can be reached at prioux@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3785.