When Are Mainers Getting That $450 to Help With Our Heating Bills?

Remember a few weeks ago the news most Mainers were getting help with heating costs?

Where is that assistance? According to WMTW, if you are eligible, you should start seeing those $450 winter energy assistance checks this week! The department of Administrative and Financial Services said the first round of payments will be in the mail by the end of this week.

The commissioner spoke to lawmakers in Augusta recently while talks of the 2023 budget were underway. The goal is to mail out 200,000 checks every week until everyone eligible gets paid. Who's eligible? If you make less than $100,000 or as a couple making less than $200,000, you will get the relief money. That's over 870,000 Mainers and we should all see that money by the end of March. Get this, 92% of Maine taxpayers qualify for the payments. That's insane that only 8% of Mainers make six figures (or more).

Heating costs (along with pretty much everything else) have jumped so much this winter. WMTW reports that in early January, 41,763 households applied for heating assistance. That's almost a 17% increase over last winter and this has truly been a pretty mild winter.

It's been a tough few years. We get hit with a pandemic that threw the entire world into economic and social chaos. Don't think for one minute, this economy isn't the result of the world shutting down. I mean, when you have to take a loan out for eggs, you don't even want to see that heating bill come. Hang tight Mainers, help is on the way and soon!