Heating Assistance Fuel Fund Policy

TOWN OF DURHAM POLICY FOR USE OF DISCRETIONARY HEATING FUEL FUND

| F Purpose

This policy will provide guidance to the Welfare Director (Director) for awarding grants from the Durham Discretionary Heating Fuel Fund.

Funding will be sought through:

1. Solicitation for donations to the fund.

2. The Board of Selectmen may seek an annual appropriation, as determined by the Board, from the legislative body. Such appropriations are to be placed in the fund for discretionary use by the Director. The fund will provide qualified citizens of the Town of Durham with a resource to help them keep warm during the heating season. :

3. Other fundraising efforts.

Il. Units of heating fuel/Amount of Award:

A unit of heating fuel for the purpose of this policy shall be:

a.) 100 gallons of #2 or K-1 heating fuel

b.) 1 cord of seasoned wood

¢.) 100 gallons of liquefied petroleum (LP) gas

d.) An equivalent amount of coal or pellet fuel

e.) $250 toward a CMP bill for electric heat

A family may be eligible for one unit of heating fuel once only during the months of October through April. A second unit of heating fuel may be granted in an extreme emergency. The Director shall find that an emergency need exists to grant a second unit of heating fuel.

Ill. Eligible families:

In order to be eligible for a grant for one (1) unit of heating fuel, a family or families sharing a dwelling unit must be ineligible for Municipal

General Assistance. Priority will be given to those applicants in the following order:

a.) retired families with fixed income (e.g. Social Security, Pension, Annuity, retirement fund)

b.) families with one or more wage earners at 200% or below the federal poverty level for Androscoggin County & determined by DHS

c.) families with seasonal workers who have recently been laid off and expect to be laid off for 120 days or more

d.) other families in need at the discretion of the Director

1

TOWN OF DURHAM POLICY FOR USE OF DISCRETIONARY HEATING FUEL FUND

IV. Referrals

a.) The Director shall respond to requests from applicants and referrals from members of the community who have knowledge of a family in need. The referral will not be pursued if, after initial contact as a result of a referral from someone outside the family, the family referred does not wish to tender an application.

¥; Application Process

a.) The Director may receive applications

b.) Applicants who may qualify for General Assistance will be urged to complete a Municipal General Assistance application. Other applicants will complete an alternate application for use in awarding grants from the Discretionary Fund. Decisions made in accordance with this policy will be made in writing to applicants in a timely fashion.

¢c.) Only those applicants ineligible for Municipal General Assistance may qualify for a grant from the Durham Discretionary Heating Fuel Fund.

d.) The standard for prudent use of income in the Town of Durham General Assistance Ordinance shall apply.

e.) Applicants who demonstrate no increase in disposable income will be considered for a grant.

f.) Each grant will be for one equivalent heating unit as defined above.

h.) Deliveries of assistance will be to a physical address in the Town of Durham only.

Approved by the Durham Board of Selectmen: September 29, 2009

Wesley Bennett Jr. Le ‘é Aree

Daniel Hume zs 7 He

Denise LaFlamme ES: KY Wy

Norman Newell Yd Wise YY A Philip Gilikson 4A» hlan »

Attest, A True Copy, urham Town Clerk 2