Earlier today, PUSH Members, joined by State Senator William Stachowski and Erie County Legislator Maria Whyte, gathered outside the Public Service Commission Office in Buffalo. They were there to formally submit public comments which urged the Public Service Commission to reject National Fuel’s Conservation Incentive Program (CIP) petition and require a program that works for the community, instead of one that passes costs on to customers who can least afford it. PUSH leaders gave personal testimony on the high cost of high heating bills, as well as a discussion about community solutions to the problem.

National Fuel has submitted a formal request to the Public Service Commission to extend its CIP program.  PUSH has sought a dialogue with National Fuel CEO David Smith about ways the program could be improved to reduce heating costs and create jobs in Buffalo’s low-income neighborhoods.  Thus far, the company has rebuffed PUSH’s request to offer community input.

“National Fuel fails to pay for its own CIP, instead shifting the cost to its customers,” said PUSH leader Bob Cook. “The program is funded by a surcharge on customer bills, authorized by the Public Service Commission in National Fuel’s most recent rate case and the $10.8 million that National Fuel puts into the program amounts to approximately $22 per customer.” Cook continued.

According to a study in Forbes, Buffalo is the 4th most expensive city to heat in the country.  This forces Buffalonians to make tough choices to meet daily needs and this burden falls heaviest on the city’s poorest residents.  Despite having disproportionately high heating costs, low-income customers receive less than 30% of CIP aid. Marketing, evaluation, and appliance rebates targeting well-capitalized homeowners account for the bulk of the budget.

PUSH believes a real Conservation Incentive Program would include the following:

· A strengthened emphasis on weatherization in low-income neighborhoods, including clear reporting requirements so that the program’s impact is transparent.

· A requirement that weatherization projects funded through CIP create “pathways out of poverty” by requiring that contractors train and hire workers from high-poverty census tracts and meet standards for the use of women and minority-owned contractors.

· Stronger integration with other programmatic weatherization efforts, including the Weatherization Assistance Program and Green Jobs/Green NY.

PUSH urged the Public Service Commission to place National Fuel’s petition to extend its Conservation Incentive Program (CIP) on hold until the company engages in a substantive dialogue about how to best employ resources to meet the critical heating and conservation needs of low-income customers in Buffalo’s neighborhoods.