Obama's budget proposal to hit LIHEAP aided locals

President Obama’s latest propositions over the budget may have a negative impact, on the locals of the state.

As per the proposed budget, the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program that helps poor people, senior citizens and handicapped people, pay their heating and conditioning bills, may be reduced to half.

U.S. Senator Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) said, “The cut would drop about 500,000 New Jersey residents from the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) that assisted nearly 1 million state residents last year.”

Bob signed a letter that urged the President to reconsider his proposed budget, as this would mean that the needy people are deprived of these benefits and this was not a right thing.

Along with Bob, Frank Lautenberg (D-N.J.) and 29 other U.S. Senators inked their signatures on the letter addressed to Jacob J. Lew, director of the Office of Management and Budget.

Useful program
"The program helps low-income families and seniors with their energy bills, while at the same time generates $1.13 in economic activity for every dollar in benefits paid,’’ stated Mark Zandi at Moody’s Analytics and Alan Blinder of Princeton University.

The economic recovery of the country may be impacted, by reducing the assistance provided to low-income groups and senior citizens.

No comment has been received on the issue by the Office of Management and Budget and even the Obama Administration has chosen to keep mum on the issue, for the time being.

But, as per the data available on the website of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Obama administration had sanctioned $5.1 billion for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, in financial year 2010.

Out of this total fund for the LIHEAP scheme, $195 million was used by the residents of the state.

Thus, the proposal is anticipated to hit the state largely.