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[Romilda Tiger]

Ifyou need help with your utility bills, are in danger of utility shut off or are currently disconnected, apply for one of the free utility grant programs below and inform your utility company immediately.

If you are having trouble affording your utility bills, there is good news! New Jersey offers a diverse portfolio of utility assistance and energy efficiency programs for low- and moderate-income households. See income limits and program information below:

The New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA) has a variety of programs that can help you with utility bills, rent and removal of lead hazards from your home. Use the anonymous "DCAid" screening tool to determine if you are eligible for assistance, and for more information on how to apply.

The Universal Service Fund (USF) provides monthly credits on electric and gas bills to help make bills more affordable. Credits are based on the amount you spend on energy that are over a certain percentage of income.

USF-Fresh Start: Eligible electric and gas customers with overdue balances of $60 or more will be automatically enrolled by their utility company into the Fresh Start program when they enroll in the USF program. Fresh Start provides forgiveness on the overdue balance amount that existed at the time of USF enrollment. Beginning October 1, 2024, eligible USF enrollees will be enrolled into Fresh Start no more than once every five years. The gas and electric utility companies administer the Fresh Start program with oversight by the BPU.

*USF shares its application with the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP). You can apply for both programs at the same time during the HEAP season (10/1 - 6/30), or apply online for USF only during the summer months.

The Payment Assistance for Gas and Electric (PAGE) Program provides relief on gas and electric bills for low- to moderate-income New Jersey households (see income limits above). Those who are income eligible for USF should apply for USF first before seeking supplemental assistance from PAGE. To self-screen for program eligibility, apply online, or print an application, please visit www.njshares.org or call 1-866-657-4273.

Note: Households with undocumented individuals may apply for USF, PAGE and HEAP described above. Please note that while HEAP requires at least one household member to have a social security number, this is not a requirement for the USF and PAGE programs. For more information, call 2-1-1.

The New Jersey Comfort Partners Program is a free program that helps income-eligible customers reduce their utility bills through implementing cost effective measures which save energy and money while improving their home's safety and comfort at no cost to them. Through Comfort Partners, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) and your electric and natural gas utilities partner with you to reduce your energy use and utility bills, improve your comfort, and increase the health and safety of your home. For more information, click here or call (866) 378-4345.

The federal Lifeline telephone assistance program offers a monthly benefit of up to $9.25 towards phone or internet services for eligible subscribers (up to $34.25 for those living on Tribal lands). Eligibility is determined based on your income (135% or less than the federal poverty guidelines) or participation in other assistance programs. In general, if you participate in any of the following programs you also may qualify for telephone assistance: Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as Food Stamps, Federal Public Housing Assistance (FPHA), Veterans Pension and Survivors Benefit, Tribal programs and Medicaid.

Telephone assistance is available to you if you are a qualified residential telephone customer. When you are seeking telephone assistance, please keep in mind that each telephone company and/or each program has different eligibility requirements, different benefits available and different restrictions. Some programs have restrictions on the optional services available to participants.

Please contact your local telephone company to participate in any of these programs. Also to find out more information, you may also call the Universal Service Administration Company (USAC), which administer Lifeline for the Federal Communications Commission by calling 888-641-8722 or by visiting their website www.lifelinesupport.org.

Applications are closed for the 2024 edition of the Climate Smart Utilities Recognition Programme, which will take place at the IWA World Water Congress & Exhibition (WWCE) in Toronto, Canada on 11-15 August 2024. Water and sanitation utilities from around the globe are invited to apply. The application deadline is has passed.

Applying to the recognition programme is an excellent way to gain recognition and share best practices towards becoming a Climate Smart player in the water sector. The recognition programme offers an outstanding opportunity to reflect on your Climate Smart journey, ensure visibility for your actions to an international audience, and share your aspirations to achieve a climate smart water sector. Joining the recognition programme is also an effective way to facilitate knowledge exchange and international collaboration with other utilities. An attractive financial incentive package covering flight expenses, conference registration fees, and accommodation in Toronto will be provided to six representatives in total, from each of the top three utilities in the Achiever category, and each of the top three utilities from low-, lower-middle- and upper-middle-income countries in the Entrant category.

Through their applications, utilities can reflect on their progress on the Climate Smart journey and compare themselves against several indicators and criteria describing an ideal Climate-Smart Utility under each pillar.

The inaugural edition of the Recognition Programme was launched in 2022 at the IWA WWCE in Copenhagen, Denmark. The second edition took place during the 2023 IWA WDCE, in Kigali, Rwanda. In 2024, the third edition will happen at the IWA WWCE, in Toronto, Canada on 11-15 August 2024.

This programme aims to inspire utilities and stakeholders to become increasingly Climate Smart and embrace the cultural shift on three interconnected pillars for action on adaptation, mitigation, and leadership. The main goals of the programme are to:

We have dedicated ourselves to carrying out climate actions to face the enormous challenges that Climate Change poses for water companies like OSSE. With a lot of work, we have obtained financing and executed the infrastructure works within the Sustainable Management Master Plan with the support of the IADB.

The application window for the recognition programme closed in October 2023 with a total of 35 applications received from 18 low- and middle-income countries,* highlighting a broad outreach of the initiative. The applications represent a diverse array of utilities facing common yet unique challenges and solutions.

Following a robust review, 20 applications in total are being recognised as Climate Smart, based on the framework defined by IWA (i.e., the application submitted has been regarded sound and worth to be shared with the IWA community by majority of the jury). Out of these 20 applications, 10 were considered outstanding by the jury, as the actions presented are inspiring and ambitious considering their local context. One application has been given a special recognition for the outstanding climate smart actions in collaboration with utilities in the Ganges basin. Each application was reviewed by three different expert, independent jury members.

The first edition of the Climate Smart Utilities Recognition Programme was launched in April 2022 and the recognition event formally took place during the IWA World Water Congress & Exhibition on 11-15 September 2022 in Copenhagen, Denmark.

The application window for the first recognition programme closed in July 2022 with 56 applications received from 34 countries and 2 territories, highlighting a truly global outreach of the programme.

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