Economic Opportunity Studies, Inc. 1 1 Meg Power, PhD National Low-Income Energy Consortium St...

Economic Opportunity Studies, Inc. www.opportunitystudies.org

1 Economic Opportunity Studies, Inc. www.opportunitystudies.org

1

Meg Power, PhD

National Low-Income Energy Consortium

St Louis MO. June 8, 2004


2

All U.S. Households Reporting Any of 9 Hardships in 1998energy

payment hardship

9% other hardship(s)

reported12%

no hardship79%


3

All US Households with Selected 1998 Hardships, by Hardship

0 20 40 60 80 100

all with hardship & without

missed energy payment(s)

no dental care

no doctor care

missed rent or house payment(s)

serious food Hardship(s)

critical food Hardship(s)

phone disconnected

other bill unpaid

energy disconnected/not delivered

evicted

Millions of Households


4

9.1 Million Energy Hardship Households

by 1998 Poverty Level

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

OVER 300% FPL

251%-300% FPL

201%-250% FPL

151%--200% FPL

Pov to 150% FPL

in Poverty


5

# of Hardships of 9.1 Million Households That Missed 1998 Energy Payments

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Perc

ent

of

House

hold

s

6 ,7, or 8 otherhardships 5 other hardships

4 other hardships

3 other hardships

2 other hardships

1 other hardship

Energy paymentproblem only


6

C om m on C lus te rs of O ne A dditiona l Hardship

C rit ica l F ood2 9 .3 %

M issed R en t2 0 %

S k ip p ed N eed ed D en ta l C are2 2 %

M issed 1 or M ore Energy Paym ents Plus One M ore23%

One More


7

C om on C lus te rs of T w o A dditiona l Ha rdships

C rit ica l F ood -2 o r m ore t im esD id N ot p ay P h on e B ill

1 9 %

M issed R en tan d P h on e P aym en ts

1 6 %

S k ip p ed N eed ed D oc to r C areC rit ica l F ood

1 5 %

M issed 1 or M ore Energy Paym ents Plus18%

Two More


8

C om m on C lus ters of F our A dditiona l Harships

C rit ica l F ood -2 o r m ore t im esD id N ot g e t n eed ed D en ta l an d M ed ica l C are

2 3 %

M issed R en tan d P h on e P aym en t (s )

M issed N eed ed D oc to r an d D en ta l C are1 2 %

S eriou s an d C rit ica l F oodM issed ren t an d P h on e p aym en t (s )

1 5 %

M issed 1 or M ore Energy Paym ents Plus9%

Four More


9

Lowest Income = Highest Number of Hardships

$-

$5,000

$10,000

$15,000

$20,000

$25,000

$30,000

$35,000

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

No. of Additional Types of Hardship

Avg. 1998 I

nco

me


10

Consumers with Energy Hardships Are: Working

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

Not LIHEAP-eligible LIHEAP -eligible

Working full-time

Working<35 hrs./ wk.

Not Working


11

Consumers with Energy Hardships Are: Under 65


12

Consumers with Energy Hardships Are Typically

• Parents• Not Married

• Not Participants in Government Programs


13

Consumers with Energy Hardships Are: On Their

Own!Family:

7%

Friend/ non-relative:

2%

Social services:4%

Other:3%

Did Not Receive Help:

81%

Nonprofit/ church:3%


14

Summary: Strategies/Policies Based on

Realities - Consumers who aren’t paying probably

have:– Multiple unpaid bills and hardships– Rented Homes with one or more defects – Families and children– Work, for many irregular, part-time, and low-

wage– Uncertain health care and nutrition– The expectation that they will take care of

their obligations without anyone’s help.


15

endnote

• These statistics are measures of household well-being from the 1998 and 2001 cohorts of Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) respondents. http://www.sipp.census.gov/sipp/. The data are from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) 1996 Panel Wave 8 Topical Module; the details of information provided by those who said they were unable to afford their full energy costs were analyzed by EOS and are found at http://www.opportunitystudies.org/weatherization/national.php . See also the SIPP working paper: Kurt Bauman “Direct Measures of Poverty as Indicators of Economic Need: Evidence from the Survey of Income and Program Participation,” U.S. Bureau of the Census Population Division Technical Working Paper No. 30, November 1998.

Economic Opportunity Studies, Inc. 1 1 Meg Power, PhD National Low-Income Energy Consortium St...

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