Posted on Thu, Mar. 27, 2003 |
How Low-Income N.J. Residents Can Get Help With Utility Bills
For information on the Universal Service Fund, which will help low-income New Jersey residents pay their utility bills - established by the state Board of Public Utilities last week - call the board's Division of Customer Assistance at 1-800-624-0241 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. weekdays. The state Department of Human Services will administer the program starting in July.
Participants will be required to pay no more than 6 percent of their annual income toward electric and natural-gas bills (3 percent for electric and 3 percent for gas, or 6 percent for electric heating customers). The fund credit will be capped at $1,800.
Households earning 175 percent of the federal poverty level or less will be eligible. These are the monthly gross-income limits for eligibility:
Household with one member: $1,292.
Two members:$1,741.
Three members:$2,190.
Four members: $2,640.
Five members: $3,089.
Six members:$3,538.
Seven members: $3,987.
Eight members: $4,436.
Nine members: $4,885.
Suzette Parmley. Inquirer Trenton Bureau
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