ALLENTOWN, Pa. (Dec. 22, 2021) - PPL Electric Utilities customers have received more than $5.1 million in utility payments through the Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP), and additional funding, as well as many other customer assistance programs, remain for eligible customers.

ERAP, a federal program administered by the state, helps renters affected by financial hardships during the COVID-19 pandemic. The program provides qualifying households with monetary assistance for monthly rent, utility bills, fees and past-due balances.

To date, more than 6,700 PPL Electric Utilities customers in eastern and central Pennsylvania have received assistance through ERAP. With additional resources still available to qualifying households, PPL Electric Utilities has been communicating directly with eligible customers since the program's inception in March and continues to encourage those who are eligible to apply.

"With energy supply costs rising, and the winter likely to cause increased energy use, we understand that our customers could potentially face financial struggles," said PPL Electric Utilities Manager of Regulatory Programs and Business Services Melinda Stumpf. "We want to ensure our customers that we are here to help during these difficult times. There are multiple programs available to those who qualify, and I encourage customers who need assistance to connect with us and see what's available to them."

With ERAP, no bill is too large or too small to receive assistance. To qualify, a household must be responsible for paying rent on a residential property and must meet the following criteria: one or more people within the household qualify for unemployment benefits, had a decrease in income or experienced other financial hardships due to the pandemic; the household can show risk of losing their home or apartment; and the household has an income at or below 80% of the county's median income.

In addition to ERAP, PPL Electric Utilities offers bill help support for eligible customers, whether they own or rent their homes. Income-eligible programs include:

  • Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) - a federal program that provides grants to income-eligible households to help with home energy bills or to pay off past-due balances.
  • OnTrack payment plan - a program that makes managing energy bills easier with lower fixed monthly payments and debt forgiveness.
  • Operation HELP - a fuel fund supported by donations from PPL Electric Utilities employees and customers that provides grants to help customers with their energy bills.
  • WRAP - a program that offers free energy-efficiency products, such as LED bulbs, to customers to help them reduce the amount of energy they use and reduce their bills.

All customers, regardless of income, can also take advantage of other bill help services, including budget billing or choosing a payment due date that works for their budget.

For more information on ERAP, as well as how you can apply, and PPL Electric Utilities' other bill help initiatives, visit pplelectric.com/billhelp.

PPL Electric Utilities provides electric delivery service to more than 1.4 million homes and businesses in Pennsylvania and ranks among the best utility companies in the country for customer service and reliability. PPL Electric Utilities is a major employer in the communities it serves. It is a subsidiary of PPL Corporation (NYSE: PPL). For more information visit www.pplelectric.com.

Customers can follow PPL Electric Utilities on Facebook (Facebook.com/PPLElectric), Twitter (Twitter.com/PPLElectric) and Instagram (Instagram.com/PPLElectric) to get up-to-the-minute news and information, energy efficiency tips, bill help information, storm updates and more.

Note to Editors: Visit our media website at www.pplnewsroom.com for additional news and background about PPL Corporation.

Contact: For news media: Russ Hryvnak, 570-807-2229, rhryvnak@pplweb.com
PPL Electric Utilities

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PPL Corporation published this content on 22 December 2021 and is solely responsible for the information contained therein. Distributed by Public, unedited and unaltered, on 22 December 2021 16:16:05 UTC.