General

Additional utility bill assistance now available

Starting this week, all residential customers in OPPD’s service territory can apply for CARES Act Utility Assistance funds.

Earlier this summer, the Douglas County Board of Commissioners voted to allocate $4 million in funding from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act for utility assistance. But those funds were only available to residents of Douglas County.

This week, additional funds were made available to residents in the entirety of OPPD’s 13-county service territory. The assistance was made possible through an agreement with the State of Nebraska and Dollar Energy Fund.

Dollar Energy Fund manages OPPD’s energy assistance program (EAP) as well as a network of community organizations across the utility’s service territory. These organizations can access the CARES utility assistance in addition to OPPD’s EAP funds to help customers experiencing financial hardship due to the pandemic.

The utility’s assistance funding now has an online tool that gives customers the option to directly apply for assistance as well as an option to work with a local assistance agency.

Customers seeking assistance have several options to apply:

• Apply online
• Apply through a partner agency. Customers can locate these agencies on a website, or call the 24-hour Agency Finder hotline, 1-888-650-9132. This is an automated phone system that is based on the zip code provided.
• Apply by phone. Customers can call 211 to apply for funding over the phone through United Way of the Midlands.

For more information about the CARES Act Utility Assistance Program’s eligibility requirements and required documentation, visit OPPD’s Energy Assistance Program website.