State
Low-income Rate Assistance
Home Heating Credit
Basic maintenance benefits for LIHEAP are issued through the Home Heating Credit to all low-income households. The Michigan Department of Treasury determines eligibility and makes the payments. You do not need to file a state income tax return to receive the Home Heating Credit. You may apply for the Home Heating Credit only. Eligibility is based on income, number of exemptions and household heating costs. To apply:
Review the Home Heating Credit Claim Instruction Book for more details and complete the MI-1040CR-7 Claim. Current year forms are available on the Treasury website (http://michigan.gov/taxes/0,4676,7-238-44143---,00.html). Forms are automatically mailed to households that received a credit last year. Applications are available from mid- to late January and may be made through September 30 of each year. Forms and instructions are also available at Treasury offices and at most public libraries, Northern Michigan post offices, and Department of Human Services (DHS) county offices.
http://michigan.gov/dhs/0,4562,7-124-5453_5531-15420--,00.html
State Emergency Relief (SER)
SER provides limited help to households with low income who have an emergency that threatens their health or safety. Covered services include home heating, electric and utility bills. Applications are available at the following website: www.michigan.gov/heatingassistance/0,1607,7-215-33211-106339--,00.html
Contact your local DHS office for more information or an application, www.michigan.gov/dhs/0,1607,7-124-5461---,00.html
Utilities
Low-income Rate Assistance
Care
Eligible customers (150 percent federal poverty guidelines) may receive a credit on their Consumers Energy bill so long as participants make on-time monthly payments toward a more affordable bill. Past due balance is frozen at the time of enrollment and will be reduced if regular monthly payments are made. After completing an application Dial 2-1-1, tell the representative you are calling to enroll in the "Consumers Energy CARE program" and they will direct you to the nearest site for enrollment. Enrollment information is available at this website: https://www.consumersenergy.com/content.aspx?id=7386
Winter Protection Plan
Protects low-income customers and all seniors age 65 and older from service shutoff December 1 - March 31. Low-income customers pay 7 percent of their estimated annual bill plus a portion of any other amount they owe during the shutoff protection period. To apply, contact your natural gas or electric utility company or alternative electric supplier.
Consumers Energy, 800-477-5050
www.michigan.gov/documents/homeheatinghelp_106697_7.pdf
Low-income Energy Efficiency
Consumers Energy
Helping Neighbors Program
At no cost to income qualified customers, energy technicians will conduct a home energy assessment, install energy-saving products and provide educational information on additional ways to reduce energy use. For more information, call 877-448-9433.
www.consumershelpingneighbors.com/
Emergency Charitable Assistance
Please note these charitable funds are last resort emergency funds with limited resources and limited times of operation.
- The Heat and Warmth Fund (THAW)
An independent non-profit organization, THAW distributes funds for bill-payment assistance across the state and promotes energy conservation, weatherization and energy efficiency education. THAW partners with several utility companies, who provide funding to administer and operate the program. Most match customer and other donations dollar for dollar and all contributions go directly to low-income bill payments.
1-800-866-8429
www.thawfund.org/ - PeopleCare
Begun in 1983, PeopleCare is a partnership between Consumers Energy and The Salvation Army to help Michigan households who may not qualify for other assistance yet are struggling to make ends meet. Charitable donations from Consumers Energy customers and employees allow The Salvation Army to extend material assistance to families, ranging from food to transportation to medical needs. Consumers Energy also donates PeopleCare bill credits for its low-income gas and electric customers, which are applied directly to a customer’s bill based on The Salvation Army caseworker assessment and authorization. To apply, contact your local Salvation Army office, which can be found at: www.usc.salvationarmy.org/wmni or www.dleg.state.mi.us/mpsc/winterwise/energy_assistance.htm
