As the expiration of the utility moratorium approaches, Westchester County’s Department of Social Services has prepared a list of resources for residents in need of relief.
o ConEd’s moratorium will end on January 2nd
o NYSEG’s moratorium will end on January 1st
o Customers can apply for Regular HEAP (Home Energy Assistance Program) benefits online at mybenefits.ny.gov or call DSS at (914) 995-3333.
- If a constituent already has a HEAP account with the Department of Social Services they can call their HEAP worker and be evaluated for the RAS Benefit.
o Additional resources to apply for assistance for water, broadband, and telephone will be provided in a forthcoming memo.
o Additional information:
-Customers can apply for regular HEAP benefits and will be automatically evaluated for Regular Arrears Supplement (RAS) at the same time and maybe able to receive up to $10,000.00 for utility arrears.
- If the arrears exceeds $10,000.00 they can potentially receive the balance in by applying for Emergency Assistance to Needy Families with Children (EAF), Emergency Safety Net Assistance (ESNA) or Emergency Assistance for Adults (EAA) payment to meet a utility (natural gas or electricity) or non-utility (other than natural gas or electricity) energy emergency assistance.
- For tenants who applied to the ERAP program for utility arrears – the program is in the process of finalizing utility arrears payments and will be making these payments directly to utility providers by the end of this month.
- An individual has the right to file an application for an Emergency with a WCDSS district at any time. Districts are required to respond to an applicant's declaration of an emergency/immediate need at the time of application for TA and to provide appropriate notice to the applicant regarding the meeting of their emergency/immediate need(s).
§ Additional resources are available here