Video, Audio, Photos & Rush Transcript: Governor Hochul Announces 1.5 Million New Yorkers Can Receive Hundreds of Dollars to Help Cover Home Heating Costs

Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that New York's Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) will open on November 2, providing financial assistance to help New Yorkers pay their heating bills amid rising utility and heating fuel costs driven by President Trump's War in Iran and federal economic policies. In response to rising fuel costs, Governor Hochul also directed State officials to increase the HEAP benefit amount for New Yorkers who have their heating fuel delivered to their home. More than 1.5 million HEAP benefits were issued last heating season, and a similar number are expected to be issued this winter.

VIDEO: The event is available to stream on YouTube here and TV quality video is available here (h.264, mp4).

AUDIO: The Governor's remarks are available in audio form here.

PHOTOS: The Governor's Flickr page will post photos of the event here.

A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:

Morning, everyone. Please be seated. I want to acknowledge Rebecca Seawright, our Assemblymember, who's very involved in fighting for our senior citizens as the Chair of the Aging Committee here, and I want to hear from her in a couple of moments. Thank you for joining us. Grace Bonilla, the head of the United Way, who understands the challenges that families are going through, and has something to say about this, as well as Barbara Guinn, our Commissioner. So thank you, everybody.

It's unseasonably warm out there. It's going to hit the 70s. But it's not staying that warm forever, and the autumn chill is going to be setting in soon, and pretty soon families will be starting to say, "Okay, time to set the thermostat. How high do I set it? What can I afford this month? What do I have to do to keep my family warm? Do I turn it down to save money and bundle up with lots and lots of blankets in bed at night?"

As someone who used to sleep in an attic with multiple family members growing up - we had a small house, big family - I remember the joy of getting an electric blanket one year. We finally could warm up, because we had no heat in Buffalo, living in that uninsulated attic. That's probably why I'm so tough today. But it shouldn't be that way for families, especially with little kids and senior citizens who are vulnerable to this.

So people are already thinking about what the fall and the winter are going to bring for them in terms of an increase in their energy bills and how frustrating that can be. And, also, we have another factor going on that wasn't there before: Donald Trump's war with Iran is driving up the cost of everything, cost of gas, utilities, groceries, the tariffs as well. So there's even more for families to have to worry about. And this is from a president who promised to lower costs. We all heard him say it. Instead, he's waging a war 6,000 miles away that is literally, by the hour making your lives more difficult and more expensive. I just want to comment on the fact that right before the President took office, December of 2024, inflation was about 2.9 percent. The good old days. A report this week said it is now 3.7 percent, the exact opposite of what he promised just two years ago, and now we're seeing the effects of this.

But I said, "What does that mean? What does 3.7 percent mean?" It means the average family, the average American family, is now paying $250 a month for the same goods and groceries they bought a year ago. Think about that. You can't budget for that. You have no idea, and that's a real hit on your pocketbook. But if you listen to the President, he says, "Affordability's not a problem. There's nothing to see here." So on the same day he said that, he said, "We have very little inflation." Okay, I'm not sure what news station he's watching - clearly not the informed press we have in this room. But here's the good news: We are paying attention. We are paying [attention] to the pain points that New Yorkers and all Americans are going through. So when the President and his enablers say, "Don't worry about affordability, that extra $250 a month is illusory, it's not real," we here in New York say, "Your family is my fight."

And that means stepping up to deliver real relief this winter. Our Home Energy Assistance Program, or HEAP as we call it, is going to begin accepting applications November 2nd. That's why I'm standing here today, to tell everybody, start preparing for this, it's just right around the corner, and qualifying households can save up to hundreds of dollars on their utility bills this very winter. And that extra money might help pay for that extra cost for the groceries. And if you're buying the groceries or the baby formula, the diapers, the school clothes - it all adds up. And what we're trying to do is, again, issue more support for families. Last year, we issued 1.3 million HEAP benefits totaling $400 million. $400 million back to help reduce the cost for New Yorkers, and we expect to do the same this year.

Let me remind you though, Donald Trump has repeatedly put HEAP on the chopping block. This is a federally funded program. Last year, he literally withheld HEAP funding during a 43 day shutdown. I'm not exaggerating. People were literally left out in the cold because they had come to rely on this, and it became so difficult for them to meet their bills when he shut that down. Instead, if the President actually cared about people, he'd be working with Congress to expand this program instead of threatening to defund it all the time. But in the meantime, as I mentioned, and the lack of leadership or compassion or responsibility in Washington, we're stepping up with programs like this to put more money back in New Yorkers' pockets.

Also, this winter, there are families who rely on oil and kerosene to heat their homes, particularly in our more rural areas. This is their lifeline, and those costs are going to just skyrocket. The price of heating oil is now 67 percent higher. The cost of kerosene is up 50 percent. So in response, New York State is increasing the heat benefit for eligible families to have kerosene and oil and other types of fuel delivered to their homes. Because again, this is another cost of the tariffs, the war, all conspiring against New Yorkers who are struggling on a good day. Because they should not have to bear the brunt of the President's reckless war or his economic policies that are absolutely failing to achieve what he said he would do.

Now, many New Yorkers automatically receive heat benefits - automatic. But there's others who still need to apply, and some people aren't sure if they qualify, so you might be surprised: Families of four earning up to $82,000 can now qualify for HEAP. So to see if you meet those requirements and how much you could save, go to ny.gov/heap, H-E-A-P once again.

But here in New York, our commitment to lowering costs doesn't just stop at utilities or stop this winter. We've already sent out three million utility rebate checks. We have another five million on the way, coming out in the next couple weeks. We enacted a ratepayer protection plan to hold utilities accountable, as well as, earlier this year, we expanded the Energy Affordability Program, opening up this program to millions and millions more New Yorkers. One million households are already getting utility bill discounts through that program, and on my watch, many more are going to be able to take advantage of it. In fact, I'm excited. We promoted this a few months ago. We have - Nearly 50,000 more households have submitted applications because we increased the threshold for income eligibility.

So to wrap up, as your Governor, making New York more affordable isn't just a policy priority, it's personal. Every time we launch a program or expand a benefit or initiate an initiative, it's focused on one goal: making life just a little bit easier for hardworking New Yorkers. And that's what the HEAP program represents - real, tangible help, monetary help for the families who need it the most. So spread the word, remind your families and your friends and your neighbors and coworkers - anyone who's struggling - to find out if they're eligible for HEAP, and they should check into it. So remind them help is there, and they're not alone. In the meantime, we'll keep working every single day to make no New Yorker have to choose between heating their home and putting food on the table. With that, let me turn it over to a leader, Grace Bonilla, the CEO of our United Way, who really has seen people struggle. She understands their challenges and wanted to make sure that we hear from her, and then we'll hear from Rebecca Seawright. Thank you.