Energy Assistance Applications Are Now Available at Tri-CAP

ST. CLOUD (WJON News) - The application window is open for the Energy Assistance Program through Tri-CAP. The Energy Assistance Program will help households in Benton, Stearns, Sherburne, and Morrison Counties pay a portion of their home heating bills.

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More Details:

Households who are at or below 50 percent of the state median income are eligible
Size of the grant is based on household size, income, fuel type, and energy usage
Federally funded through the U.S. Department of Human Services
Funds are available for renters or homeowners

Theresa Flinck is the Director of Family Resources at Tri-CAP. She says the office is ready to process thousands of applications as the weather turns colder.

As it's getting colder, people are definitely thinking about energy assistance. We will help 1000s of households, but believe it or not, this program is still underutilized. We want to encourage people to apply; the program is available for low-income communities. And we really want to support people in keeping their homes warm.

Tri-CAP works with a number of programs focused on helping people with housing, energy assistance, and nutrition. Flinck says many people don’t know about all the benefits available, including auto repair and property tax funding.

I would encourage people to call our main line and talk to a live person about any of the programs: whether that be our rural transportation, whether that be our snap application assistance, affordable connectivity and high-speed internet discount. We are now operating some auto repair funds as well as property tax assistance. So that is a direct way to get access to those resources and get those applications in so that they can understand better the qualification.

Income guidelines vary by program, so Flinck says filling out an application is the first step to finding out what a family can qualify for.

For more details, find Tri-CAP’s website here.