Winter Heating Costs Spike: How Much More Will VA Residents Pay?

VIRGINIA — Home heating costs in Virginia are expected to rise sharply this winter, especially for households that use natural gas and heating oil, the U.S. Department of Energy said Wednesday.

The bleak report sparked worry by some that local home heating assistance programs may not be able to make up the difference for struggling families.

The agency projects natural gas bills across the nation will jump by 28 percent over last winter, heating oil bills will go up 27 percent, electricity will be 10 percent higher, and propane will cost 5 percent more.

The Energy Department estimates the average household in the South region will pay $761 to heat their homes with natural gas this winter, an increase of 24 percent from the previous winter. For data purposes, the department places Virginia in the South region, even though it's near the border with the Northeast region.

For the Northeast region, the Energy Department projects the average household will pay about $1,094 to heat their homes with natural gas this winter, an increase of 23 percent from last winter.

Looking at electricity costs, the Energy Department projects the average household in the Southeast region will pay about $1,249 to power their homes with electricity this winter, an increase of 12 percent. In the Northeast region, the department projects the average household will pay about $1,679 to power their homes with electricity this winter, an 11 percent increase from the 2021-22 winter.

For Virginia residents who use heating oil to run their furnaces, the Energy Department estimates that winter heating costs will total $2,354, a 27 percent increase from last winter.

The surge in home heating costs comes on top of stubborn inflation that is raising the price of almost everything. Inflation rates accelerated last month with consumer prices, excluding the volatile food and energy sectors, growing 6.6 percent, the fastest such pace in four decades. Overall, the September Consumer Price Index was up 8.2 percent from the year prior.

Heating assistance application process

People who need help paying their heating bills should check to see if they’re eligible for assistance under the federally funded Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program. The Virginia Energy Assistance Program, operated by the Virginia Department of Social Services, offers help to Virginians to meet their immediate home energy needs.

To be eligible, households must have a heating expense and a gross monthly income that may not exceed 150 percent of the federal poverty level.

Applications for fuel assistance are accepted at local departments of social services. The EAP consists of four components: fuel assistance, crisis assistance, cooling assistance and weatherization assistance.

When to submit an application:

Applications are accepted until the second Friday in November.

Eligibility requirements:

• Household applying must be responsible for heating costs
• For a complete list of eligibility requirements, refer to this manual.

How to apply:

• Option 1: Screen for eligibility and/or apply online through CommonHelp
• Option 2: Call the Enterprise Customer Service Center at 1-855-635-4370 to apply over the telephone.
• Option 3: Submit an application manually. Fill out the appropriate application below and return it to your local department of social services:
  • Fuel Assistance Application (English) (PDF)
  • Fuel Assistance Application (Spanish) (PDF)

When to expect eligibility determination:

• Applicants should expect notification of their eligibility in late-December.

Federal funding, shut-off moratorium requests

Congress added $1 billion to the LIHEAP fund, strained during the third-hottest summer on record, bringing it to $4.8 billion. But the amount of assistance available falls short of last year, when pandemic relief packages took the fund to $8 billion.

Advocacy groups across the country are pressuring utilities to implement a moratorium on winter shut-offs.

The projected spike in winter’s heating bills — the highest in more than a decade, according to the National Energy Assistance Directors Association — are the result of converging factors.

Global energy consumption has rebounded from the early days of the pandemic, and supply was barely keeping pace before the war in Ukraine further reduced supplies. The situation is even bleaker in Europe, where Russia’s continued curtailment of natural gas is pushing prices upward and causing painful shortages.

Anxiety is growing among consumers across the country. The pain will be especially acute in New England, which is heavily reliant on heating oil to keep homes warm. It’s projected to cost more than $2,300 to heat a typical home with heating oil this winter, the Energy Department said.

“People are scared. They’re worried. They’re frustrated,” Lisa McGee, who coordinates the heating aid program in Lewiston, Maine, told the Associated Press. “There’s more anxiety this year.”

Mark Wolfe, the executive director of the National Energy Assistance Directors Association, said a “crisis is coming.”

“There’s a lot of uncertainty and factors in play that could drive prices higher,” he told the AP.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.