Senate Resolution 128 - Introduced
PAG LIN
S.R. ________ H.R. ________
1 1 SENATE RESOLUTION NO.
1 2 BY HORN, RAGAN, HATCH, BLACK, McCOY,
1 3 CONNOLLY, STEWART, BEALL, DANIELSON,
1 4 DOTZLER, DVORSKY, WARNSTADT, SENG, RIELLY,
1 5 OLIVE, HANCOCK, HOGG, DEARDEN, FRAISE,
1 6 APPEL, SCHOENJAHN, QUIRMBACH, BOLKCOM,
1 7 GRONSTAL, KIBBIE, HECKROTH, SCHMITZ,
1 8 KREIMAN, and WOOD
1 9 A Resolution requesting the Iowa utilities board and
1 10 Iowa's energy utilities to voluntarily extend the
1 11 moratorium on utility disconnection through April
1 12 14, 2008.
1 13 WHEREAS, Iowa's rate=regulated utilities reported
1 14 for February 2008 218,360 accounts that were past due
1 15 and owing $36.5 million, which is the second=highest
1 16 monthly total reported owing since 2000; and
1 17 WHEREAS, in 2007, these utilities disconnected
1 18 6,742 households in April, 8,119 in May, and 8,080 in
1 19 June, and these statistics lead to an expectation that
1 20 a record or near=record number of disconnections will
1 21 occur in 2008; and
1 22 WHEREAS, in 2007, Iowa's low=income home energy
1 23 assistance program (LIHEAP) served 85,692 households
1 24 and is projected to serve between 85,000 and 90,000
1 25 households in 2008 through April 15, 2008, with an
1 26 average assistance payment of approximately $400; and
1 27 WHEREAS, the extended forecast for early April is
1 28 for continued cold weather, placing at risk the health
1 29 and safety of low=income families whose home energy
1 30 utilities are disconnected; NOW THEREFORE,
2 1 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE, That the Senate
2 2 requests the Iowa utilities board and Iowa's energy
2 3 utilities to voluntarily extend the utility
2 4 disconnection moratorium, which would otherwise end
2 5 after April 1, 2008, through April 14, 2008.
2 6 LSB 6647XS 82
2 7 jp/rj/5