On the recordJanuary 22, 2015
this is a bipartisan amendment, which I am proud to sponsor with Senator Collins of Maine. It would express the sense of the Senate that we should fund LIHEAP, the Low Income Heating Assistance Program, at $4.7 billion. We have seen a significant diminution of the LIHEAP funding over the years. This amendment helps every aspect of the country. It helps low-income households, particularly seniors. It would help immensely families throughout this country. In the winter it is about heating oil in New England and Alaska and all through the north and central plains. In the summer it is about cooling in the southwest and the southeast. If families and households can't get access to these resources, they have to make a hard choice between literally paying for their energy or sometimes their rent or sometimes their food. This program has been long supported on a bipartisan basis. We should aim for this figure. I yield the floor. The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska.
