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Increased Funding Required for Program to Help Needy Pay Energy Costs, Community Advocates, Entergy Employees Tell Congress

Increased Funding Required for Program to Help Needy Pay Energy Costs, Community Advocates, Entergy Employees Tell Congress

Published 02-11-09

Submitted by Entergy Corporation

WASHINGTON, Feb. 11 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Increased funding is needed if the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program is to help the growing number of first-time applicants who have fallen victim to the recession.

More than 25 community advocates and Entergy employees spread the message today about the need to fund LIHEAP during Capitol Hill meetings with members of congressional delegations from each of the four states served by Entergy utilities. Participants asked that Congress either increase funding for LIHEAP or keep it at the current level of $5.1 billion. LIHEAP is the primary method of helping pay energy bills for the elderly, disabled and children of the working-poor.

Even with a record appropriation of $5.1 billion for fiscal year 2009, estimates are LIHEAP will only reach about one out of every four eligible American households.

Victoria Seals of Jackson, Miss., understands the need for LIHEAP funding better than most. A LIHEAP grant helped the mother of two pay her energy bills while she met the final requirements for a degree in social work.

"While a student at Jackson State University, I was required to complete various volunteer hours to earn my bachelor's degree in social work. There just wasn't enough time in the day for me to meet that requirement, finish school and hold down a full-time job," Seals told reporters at a Capitol Hill press conference today. "I needed help from LIHEAP so I could honor my energy bills and actually graduate from college. Without that extra support, it would have been impossible for me to finish my internship and graduate when I did.

"It was the first time I've needed help like that, and it meant so much to me," she said. "It's not an entitlement program. It gave me the kind of help that's so needed these days - it got me over a serious financial bump."

Seals said the Hinds County (Miss.) Human Resource Agency's LIHEAP program is much more than payment assistance. "It's really designed to help people move toward becoming self-sufficient. The agency certainly did that with me and many others," she said.

Seals, community advocates and Entergy employees from Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas and Arkansas were among about 200 participants in the National Fuel Funds Network's annual Action Day for LIHEAP.

"The number of people needing help is growing along with the recession. Congress needs to increase funding for LIHEAP for fiscal year 2010 - or at least keep it stable -- to meet that demand," said Linda Barnes, manager of low-income initiatives for Entergy. "We are finding more and more customers who are having trouble paying their energy bills for the first time. If LIHEAP doesn't respond, how are they going to get help? Adequate LIHEAP funding needs to be there next year. It's clear that more and more folks desperately need the help LIHEAP provides. Parents should not be forced to choose between their thermostat and buying enough food for their children.

"At the minimum, funding has to be kept at the current $5.1 billion level or we won't be able to help the most vulnerable," Barnes said.

Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, and it is the second-largest nuclear generator in the United States. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.7 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of more than $13 billion and approximately 14,300 employees.

Entergy's online address is www.entergy.com

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Entergy Corporation

Entergy Corporation

Entergy is a Fortune 500 company that powers life for 3 million customers through our operating companies in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. We’re investing in the reliability and resilience of the energy system while helping our region transition to cleaner, more efficient energy solutions. With roots in our communities for more than 100 years, Entergy is a nationally recognized leader in sustainability and corporate citizenship. Since 2018, we have delivered more than $100 million in economic benefits each year to local communities through philanthropy, volunteerism and advocacy. Entergy is headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, and has approximately 12,000 employees. Learn more at entergy.com and follow @Entergy on social media. #WePowerLife

Corporate Social Responsibility at Entergy

For more than 100 years, Entergy has powered life in our communities through strategic philanthropy, volunteerism and advocacy. Entergy’s corporate social responsibility initiatives help create and sustain thriving communities, position the company for sustainable growth and are aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Our top CSR priorities are education/workforce development, poverty solutions/social services and environmental programs. Entergy annually contributes $16-$18 million in shareholder-funded grants to approximately 2,000 nonprofit organizations in the communities where we operate. In addition, our employees volunteer more than 100,000 hours in those communities' values at more than $3 million.

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