Biden administration to unveil plan to help Americans lower energy costs


The Biden administration will provide $13 billion to assist low and moderate-income American households in offsetting the costs of energy bills. The aid will include grants to pay electric bills and incentivize upgrading their homes to be more energy-efficient.
A senior administration official told reporters on a call that Vice President Kamala Harris will announce the plan on Wednesday while visiting a Boston training facility and union hall for sheet metal workers, per CNBC. The pending announcement aligns with the administration's goals to address climbing energy costs and temperature changes due to climate change.
The official reported that the funds would include $4.5 billion in Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program funds allocated by the Department of Health and Human Services. Those funds will include $100 million from President Biden's bipartisan infrastructure law and $1 billion in emergency funding, per CNBC.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"We know that winter heating bills account for the largest share of low-income households' home energy needs. So it is imperative that the funds reach households as efficiently and effectively as possible," the official said.
The remaining funds, approximately $9 billion allocated per the Inflation Reduction Act, will be provided by the administration for qualifying households to make energy-efficient home upgrades to lower energy costs. This funding will help upwards of 1.6 million households. In a statement, the White House says the plan will "complement tax credits that families and building owners can use under the Inflation Reduction Act to install energy-saving equipment and to make building upgrades."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Theara Coleman has worked as a staff writer at The Week since September 2022. She frequently writes about technology, education, literature and general news. She was previously a contributing writer and assistant editor at Honeysuckle Magazine, where she covered racial politics and cannabis industry news.
-
Electric ferries are becoming the next big environmental trend
Under the Radar From Hong Kong to Lake Tahoe, electric ferries are the new wave
By Justin Klawans, The Week US
-
US proposes eroding species protections
Speed Read The Trump administration wants to change the definition of 'harm' in the Environmental Protection Act to allow habitat damage
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Ukraine is experiencing an 'ecocide' and wants Russia to pay
Under the radar The environment is a silent victim of war
By Devika Rao, The Week US
-
How wild horses are preventing wildfires in Spain
Under The Radar The animals roam more than 5,700 hectares of public forest, reducing the volume of combustible vegetation in the landscape
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK
-
Scientists invent a solid carbon-negative building material
Under the radar Building CO2 into the buildings
By Devika Rao, The Week US
-
Dozens of deep-sea creatures discovered after iceberg broke off Antarctica
Under the radar The cold never bothered them anyway
By Devika Rao, The Week US
-
Severe storms kill dozens across central US
Speed Read At least 40 people were killed over the weekend by tornadoes, wildfires and dust storms
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Earth's climate is in the era of 'global weirding'
The Explainer Weather is harder to predict and more extreme
By Devika Rao, The Week US