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2.06.04 Gas shut-offs loom for more customers Just like the snow piling up around Omaha, bad luck has piled up around Harvey Sullivan. Disabled by five bullets in the 1980s, Sullivan, 58, is struggling to raise his four kids. Government checks, friends and family help, but still the dollars don't stretch far enough. The refrigerator, stove, washer and dryer are on the fritz. Holes in six or seven windows are covered with plastic. And once again, the Sullivan family is at risk of having the gas shut off. He has fallen $625 behind on his bills to the Metropolitan Utilities District. "This is the hardest winter I have ever had," Sullivan said. "I don't know what's going to happen. I don't know where to go. If I can make it through this winter, I definitely won't get caught like this again." He is not the only one in a bind. About 15,200 M.U.D. customers, more than twice as many as last year, are at risk of having their gas shut off. And the size of the delinquent bills is up, too. The average delinquent residential bill at M.U.D. is $161, about 22 percent higher than a year ago. At Aquila Inc., which serves eastern Nebraska, including Lincoln and suburban Omaha, about 8,000 customers were sent cut-off notices in January. In all, about 22,000 Aquila customers are behind on their bills. The average delinquent bill is $131, up 26 percent from a year ago. Neither utility is currently disconnecting customers because it is too cold. But officials at both Aquila and MUD are concerned. The extended forecast calls for continued below-normal temperatures. "The coldest weather has just recently hit," said Chuck Loomis, business manager for Aquila. "Much of the impact on customer bills may still be yet to come." Loomis and Tom Wurtz, general manager of M.U.D., asked that customers call for help. "The longer we have cold weather, the larger the bills are going to be," Wurtz said. "We really encourage people to come in. The last thing we want to do is shut off one of our customers." Wurtz said delinquencies have climbed at M.U.D. because it's been two months since the utility has disconnected service. Cold weather in much of January and the annual holiday moratorium in December kept M.U.D. from shutting off service. M.U.D. and Aquila have different shut-off policies. M.U.D. will not disconnect service when temperatures are forecast to drop below 20 degrees, while Aquila uses 30 degrees as its threshold. Also, M.U.D. uses a $100 delinquency as the basis for shut-off notice, while Aquila bases its decision on the amount of time a bill is overdue. Both utilities offer payment plans to help people catch up. And eligible customers can receive money through a Salvation Army heat assistance program. Also, a United Way counselor is stationed in M.U.D.'s lobby to help people straighten out their finances. For whatever reason, perhaps because of the snowy roads, the number of people using the counselor is down by more than half since early January. Local assistance programs are bracing for an increase in calls. So far this year, about 770 people have called United Way, seeking help with shut-off notices for their utilities. While the callers had a mix of gas, electric and water bills to pay, higher heating costs pushed up the overall number of shut-off notices, said Jamie Moore, vice president of volunteer and community services at United Way. Many people have to rob Peter to pay Paul, Moore said. So they might choose to pay some toward their heating bill, only to let their electric bill slide. Or, Moore said, they might pay the utility companies, then come up short on rent. In fact, 662 people called United Way since the beginning of the year because they couldn't pay their rent or mortgage. While utilities prefer to avoid shut-offs, they will resume them when the weather permits. M.U.D.'s backlog of delinquent bills totals $2.6 million, which is 86 percent higher than a year ago. Aquila's overdue bills total about $2.9 million. That isn't something the utilities can take lightly. M.U.D.'s gas department, for example, has operated in the red the past two years and is running on a shoestring this year. |
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