Delmarva Power is providing $1.9 million in funding to help limited-income customers cover energy costs as temperatures drop.
With approval from the Delaware Public Service Commission, Delmarva is able to help approximately 2,700 limited income customers by forgiving past-due charges on their accounts.
The $1.9 million represents the remaining funds in Delmarva’s Arrearage Management Program (AMP), which will end after this year.
Delmarva Power spokesperson Zach Chizer ays eligible customers can receive up to $6,000 in credits per household.
“They have to be a residential Delmarva Power Delaware customer with unpaid charges from July 2022 or earlier, and that includes both natural gas customers and electric customers,” he explained. “They have to have qualified for state assistance programs. And they must not currently be in disconnection status due to nonpayment of a period of more than 90 days.”
Eligible customers don’t need to apply for assistance from this program - they’ll be contacted by Delmarva Power, and see the credits on their bill.
“This is certainly an important time of year as we head into the holidays, the winter time, the colder weather- people are at home a lot more often, they’re going to be using a lot more electricity and gas to power their homes, and we just want to make sure they know that we’re here for them if they need us,” said Chizer.
While AMP is ending, there are other ways low-income customers can receive assistance.
Customers can call 2-1-1 to be referred to local agencies and services offering assistance with utilities and other necessities. They can also apply for the federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, which provides up to $2,500 in Delaware in grants to those in need.
For more information on alternative programs, visit delmarva.com/EnergyAssistance.
