At first glance, President Obama’s motion to kill a program that provides low-income families with energy sounds as politically attractive as legislation to drown puppies, but when you take a look at the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), it makes all the sense in the world.
LIHEAP has become a rapidly expanding federal program meant to help America’s households with the lowest incomes pay their fuel bills. The funding for LIHEAP more than doubled in the past few years, increasing from about $2 billion in 2008 to $5.1 billion this fiscal year. President Obama’s fiscal year 2012 budget request cuts LIHEAP to $2.6 billion. Despite the noble intentions behind LIHEAP, it is a program beset by fraud and waste, and it fails to address the real issue of reducing high energy prices by increasing energy supplies.
Nobody wants the heat shut off on low-income households in the middle of winter, which is why state laws prohibit utilities from doing so, making LIHEAP duplicative. In reality, that money just goes to utilities that would not have collected the money. In many cases the money is lost to fraud and abuse. A June 2010 Government Accountability Office report on LIHEAP found that:
• The Department of Health and Human Services sent $3.9 million to 11,000 deceased people to pay heating and cooling costs out of the LIHEAP.
• The state of Illinois “provided $840 in energy assistance to a U.S. Postal Service employee who fraudulently reported zero income to qualify for LIHEAP. Despite earning about $80,000 per year, the employee stated that she saw ‘long lines’ of individuals applying for LIHEAP benefits and wanted the ‘free money.’”
• Claims processors did not practice due diligence. The report states, “Posing as low-income residents, landlords, and an energy company, GAO used bogus addresses and fabricated energy bills, pay stubs, and other documents to apply for energy assistance. All fraudulent claims were processed and the energy assistance payments were issued to our bogus landlords and company.”
President Obama defended the cuts by saying that, because energy prices are lower than they were in 2008, the funding does not need to be nearly as high. He went on to say, “If it turns out that, once again, you see a huge energy spike, then we can revisit it, but let’s not just assume because it’s at a $5 billion level that each year we’re going to sustain it at a $5 billion level regardless of what’s happening on the energy front.”
Instead of worrying about how to use taxpayer dollars to help Americans with high energy prices, the Administration and Congress should focus on a policy that makes energy affordable in the United States. Increasing access to our own energy reserves onshore and offshore and allowing access to easy imports from Canada would be a more prudent solution. President Obama should be applauded for his budget cut to LIHEAP. It is a step in the right direction; however, without the proper reforms to the energy market, it will do nothing to help Americans cope with higher energy prices.
The lack of funding for RTT and i3 seems especially contradictory to Republican statements on innovation. House Education and Workforce Committee Chairman John Kline (R-MN) responded to the President’s budget by saying the following:
A recent hearing highlighted a number of innovative solutions underway at the state and local level that are producing real results on behalf of students and parents. It is time we asked why increasing the federal government’s role in education has failed to improve student achievement. I look forward to charting a new course in education that ensures Washington doesn’t stand in the way of meaningful state and local reforms.
RTT has triggered the most dramatic and meaningful state education reforms the country has seen in many years. At least 10 states changed their laws to make themselves more competitive for the competition’s first round before a single dollar was awarded, and 28 states in total reformed their education policies in 2009 and 2010 to prepare for the first two rounds of the competition.
The Investing in Innovation Fund, or the i3 Fund, is a competitive grant program that takes on the challenging mandate of improving achievement at low-performing schools. Instead of throwing dollars at the problem and hoping that something sticks, it adopts a focused plan that encourages schools to develop innovative solutions that, among other things, increase high school graduation rates and close achievement gaps.
Bottom line? While Republicans may be moved to tears when talking about how all kids should have the opportunity to live the American dream, they fall short on action. Education yields a lot of bang for the buck, and meaningful reform requires Republicans to put their money where their mouths are.
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Psychologist shows why we “choke” under pressure – and how to <b>...</b>
U.S. News & World Report – September 21, 2010. The Dwarfs were right! Whistling while you work makes you do your job better. Daily Mail – September 22, 2010. Psychologist studies sports 'choke'. United Press International – September 21 ...
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bench craft company
bench craft company
Psychologist shows why we “choke” under pressure – and how to <b>...</b>
U.S. News & World Report – September 21, 2010. The Dwarfs were right! Whistling while you work makes you do your job better. Daily Mail – September 22, 2010. Psychologist studies sports 'choke'. United Press International – September 21 ...
Good <b>news</b>: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House « Hot Air
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Small Business <b>News</b>: Cash Flow Tips and Basics
The key to small business success has always been cash flow. With enough cash flow a small business can expand on its own with less need for credit or outside.
bench craft company
Psychologist shows why we “choke” under pressure – and how to <b>...</b>
U.S. News & World Report – September 21, 2010. The Dwarfs were right! Whistling while you work makes you do your job better. Daily Mail – September 22, 2010. Psychologist studies sports 'choke'. United Press International – September 21 ...
Good <b>news</b>: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House « Hot Air
Good news: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House.
Small Business <b>News</b>: Cash Flow Tips and Basics
The key to small business success has always been cash flow. With enough cash flow a small business can expand on its own with less need for credit or outside.
bench craft company
Psychologist shows why we “choke” under pressure – and how to <b>...</b>
U.S. News & World Report – September 21, 2010. The Dwarfs were right! Whistling while you work makes you do your job better. Daily Mail – September 22, 2010. Psychologist studies sports 'choke'. United Press International – September 21 ...
Good <b>news</b>: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House « Hot Air
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Small Business <b>News</b>: Cash Flow Tips and Basics
The key to small business success has always been cash flow. With enough cash flow a small business can expand on its own with less need for credit or outside.
bench craft company
Psychologist shows why we “choke” under pressure – and how to <b>...</b>
U.S. News & World Report – September 21, 2010. The Dwarfs were right! Whistling while you work makes you do your job better. Daily Mail – September 22, 2010. Psychologist studies sports 'choke'. United Press International – September 21 ...
Good <b>news</b>: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House « Hot Air
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Small Business <b>News</b>: Cash Flow Tips and Basics
The key to small business success has always been cash flow. With enough cash flow a small business can expand on its own with less need for credit or outside.
bench craft company
Psychologist shows why we “choke” under pressure – and how to <b>...</b>
U.S. News & World Report – September 21, 2010. The Dwarfs were right! Whistling while you work makes you do your job better. Daily Mail – September 22, 2010. Psychologist studies sports 'choke'. United Press International – September 21 ...
Good <b>news</b>: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House « Hot Air
Good news: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House.
Small Business <b>News</b>: Cash Flow Tips and Basics
The key to small business success has always been cash flow. With enough cash flow a small business can expand on its own with less need for credit or outside.
bench craft company
Psychologist shows why we “choke” under pressure – and how to <b>...</b>
U.S. News & World Report – September 21, 2010. The Dwarfs were right! Whistling while you work makes you do your job better. Daily Mail – September 22, 2010. Psychologist studies sports 'choke'. United Press International – September 21 ...
Good <b>news</b>: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House « Hot Air
Good news: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House.
Small Business <b>News</b>: Cash Flow Tips and Basics
The key to small business success has always been cash flow. With enough cash flow a small business can expand on its own with less need for credit or outside.
bench craft company
Psychologist shows why we “choke” under pressure – and how to <b>...</b>
U.S. News & World Report – September 21, 2010. The Dwarfs were right! Whistling while you work makes you do your job better. Daily Mail – September 22, 2010. Psychologist studies sports 'choke'. United Press International – September 21 ...
Good <b>news</b>: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House « Hot Air
Good news: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House.
Small Business <b>News</b>: Cash Flow Tips and Basics
The key to small business success has always been cash flow. With enough cash flow a small business can expand on its own with less need for credit or outside.
bench craft company
Psychologist shows why we “choke” under pressure – and how to <b>...</b>
U.S. News & World Report – September 21, 2010. The Dwarfs were right! Whistling while you work makes you do your job better. Daily Mail – September 22, 2010. Psychologist studies sports 'choke'. United Press International – September 21 ...
Good <b>news</b>: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House « Hot Air
Good news: Obama now brewing his own beer at the White House.
Small Business <b>News</b>: Cash Flow Tips and Basics
The key to small business success has always been cash flow. With enough cash flow a small business can expand on its own with less need for credit or outside.
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