Need help paying your power bill? Apply for a grant by March 31

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Delaware Public Service Commission Executive Director Bob Howatt explains how public utility rates are determined in the state. Karl Baker/THE NEWS JOURNAL

A bundle of federal cash designed to help low-income people pay electricity bills is up for grabs to Delmarva Power customers, the public utility said in a statement this week.

Households that apply for the energy assistance grants by March 31 can receive up to $1,500, according to the Newark-based company.

The grants will be awarded through the federally-funded Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP. In Delaware, it is administered by the state Division of State Service Centers and Catholic Charities Inc. To apply, visit the state's LIHEAP website here.

Households with incomes of less than 200 percent of the federal poverty level may qualify for the grants, according to the state. For a family of four, that amounts to a monthly income of $4,100. Customers do not have to be behind on their bills to receive a grant, Delmarva said.

Delmarva Power, which is owned by Chicago-based Exelon Corporation, provides electricity to more than a half-million people in Delaware and Maryland, according to the company. It also serves about 129,000 natural gas customers in northern Delaware. 

Exelon, a $37-billion company, reported net income of $3.8 billion in 2017, up 24 percent from the previous year. In 2016, the company merged with Pepco Holdings, creating the country's largest publicly held utility.

Last fall, Delmarva Power had petitioned the state to grant it an electricity and gas rate increase of about $43 million, or roughly $9 per household. The company last month reduced the request by $26 million as a result of a petition from Drew Slater, the Delaware Public Advocate.

Slater and a handful of state lawmakers had argued in January that the savings to Delmarva Power from slashed federal taxrates should flow to ratepayers. 

In addition to LIHEAP, Delmarva Power said it offers a "budget billing" payment system for customers who can't pay bills on time during peak energy use months. The system averages monthly payments over a 12-month period, the utility said. 

Contact Karl Baker at kbaker@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2329. Follow him on Twitter @kbaker6.