Despite the availability of multiple utility assistance programs, enrollment is a fraction of what it should be due to paperwork and a lack of awareness.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 19, 2025
Contact: Erik Salmi
202-445-0834

As District residents brace for expected rate increases by both Pepco and Washington Gas, DC Councilmember Charles Allen (Ward 6) is introducing a new bill to get lower and middle-income households automatically enrolled in existing utility assistance programs for which they are eligible, rather than forcing working people to figure it out.

The combination of paperwork and luck to even know what programs exist means tens of thousands of DC residents miss out on lower monthly bills, even as the cost of housing, groceries, transit, and more has all risen with inflation. Enrollment in DC’s various utility discount programs ranges from 4,800 to 21,000 households, depending on the service, but the universe of households that are eligible is likely more than 100,000 households. That’s according to analysis by Councilmember Allen’s office and the Council’s Budget Office based on publicly available data.

Councilmember Allen wants to minimize the paperwork and get more people enrolled.

“Right now we have an onerous system, and we force people to jump through hoops just to get the help they need, often when another part of government has already determined they are eligible. If you qualify for one DOEE program, you almost certainly qualify for three or four others whose combined assistance could put hundreds of dollars back into your monthly budget,” Councilmember Allen said. “Pepco bills are set to rise in two weeks. Washington Gas has asked for a rate increase. People are feeling the pinch, and it’s not good enough to say we have these programs if we are missing thousands of households who could benefit.”

The Automatic Enrollment for Utility Affordability Programs Act of 2025 simplifies the process by requiring the Department of Energy and Environment (DOEE) to automatically enroll eligible households in all of its utility affordability programs. The bill requires the Department of Human Services (DHS) and the Department of Health Care Finance (DHCF) to provide DOEE, pending residents’ consent, with enrollment data for any income-qualified programs administered by those agencies, including SNAP, TANF, and Medicaid. DOEE would use this information to enroll households in its own utility affordability programs.

The bill also requires DOEE to notify households that have been automatically enrolled, including the date they will begin receiving benefits and the nature of the assistance they can expect.

DOEE’s programs include the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, Utility Discount Programs, the Weatherization Assistance Program, and the Clean Rivers Impervious Area Charge Residential Relief Program. Currently, each requires a separate application process.

The bill is co-introduced by Councilmembers Lewis George, McDuffie, Nadeau, Parker, and Robert White.