An extra $50 million will go into the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which benefits needy residents in St. Lawrence County and elsewhere, according to New York senators Kirsten Gillibrand and Charles Schumer.

A total of $3.7 billion will fund the program, through the 2019 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill, that was signed into law on Friday, the senators said.

LIHEAP is the main federal program that helps low-income households and seniors pay their energy bills, providing assistance during winter cold and summer heat. New York State is the largest beneficiary in the nation of LIHEAP funding, with over 1,000,000 New Yorkers relying on the program, the senators said.

LIHEAP assists low-income households and seniors who spend a high proportion of their total household income on home energy. The program provides funding to recipients during the cold winter and hot summer months, when energy costs are at their highest. The funding can offset the cost of more efficient heating units in the winter, more efficient air conditioners in the summer, and utility bills. LIHEAP assistance can also cover the costs for bulk fuels, coal, pellets, wood, and other utilities, the senators said.

“No New Yorker should be forced to choose between keeping their homes warm during the winter, or cool during the summer, and paying for their food or rent,” Gillibrand said in a prepared statement. “LIHEAP is a lifeline for over one million New Yorkers who rely on this critical program to cover their energy bills. I fought for this funding to be included in this year’s Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations bill and will always work to make sure that no family is left behind.”

“Hundreds of thousands of fixed-income seniors and low to moderate-income New Yorkers rely on LIHEAP funding every year to help pay for the home heating costs that have become a larger and larger share of their budget. With the harsh New York winter only a few months away now, this $3.7 billion federal investment will help the state’s most vulnerable cover their high energy costs,” Schumer said in a prepared statement. “I was proud to fight for these critical funds in the Senate, and will always work to ensure that New Yorkers don’t have to make the decision of whether to pay their energy bills or put food on the dinner table.”