新泽西州水电账单补助新季开启：每月抵免最高200美元、一份申请同办两项补助
位于美国新泽西州默瑟县 Trenton 市的州公共事业委员会（NJBPU）10月30日发布通告：新一年度能源补助申请季已于10月1日开启，符合资格的低收入与中等收入家庭可通过全民服务基金（USF）获得每月水电账单抵免，燃气与电费合计最高每月200美元。
USF 由州社区事务部（NJDCA）管理。抵免标准去年已经提高：燃气与电费的最低月抵免从每项5美元升到20美元，合计最高抵免从180美元升到200美元；该计划的设计目标，是让受助家庭花在能源上的钱不超过家庭收入的3%（以抵免上限为限）。
NJBPU 主席 Ben Hertz-Shargel 说：「负担能力是我们一切工作的中心，这意味着要确保新泽西家庭能拿到他们需要的补助。」社区事务部专员 Jacquelyn A. Suárez 表示，提高后的月抵免与扩大的外展服务，能为预算紧张的家庭带来实实在在的减负。
申请只需填一份表，即可同时申请 USF 与联邦低收入家庭能源援助计划（LIHEAP）：新泽西州社区事务部申请入口。LIHEAP 是一次性补助，用于取暖、电费与可配送燃料等开支，还涵盖医疗必需的制冷费用、面临断供时的紧急补助与供暖设备维修更换；其申请期为2026年10月1日至2027年6月30日，按先到先办、资金用完为止。收入上限与资格信息可查 新泽西州能源补助网站，也可拨打 1-800-510-3102 咨询。
加入 USF 的家庭还可获得欠费减免计划（Fresh Start）与冬夏两季的断供保护；州里的冬季停供保护期为11月15日至次年3月15日。全州七家燃气与电力公司被要求协助首次申请者办手续，上一个计划年度已新登记逾8,000名首次参加者，超过第一年目标。
New Jersey Utility Bill Aid Season Opens: Monthly Credits of up to $200, One Application for Two Programs
The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU), based in Trenton, Mercer County, announced on October 30 that the new energy assistance application season opened on October 1. Through the Universal Service Fund (USF), eligible low- and moderate-income households can receive monthly credits on their gas and electric bills of up to $200 a month combined.
USF is administered by the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (NJDCA). Benefit levels were raised last year: the minimum monthly credit rose from $5 to $20 for gas and for electric service, and the maximum combined credit rose from $180 to $200 a month. The program is designed so that participating households pay no more than three percent of household income on energy costs, up to the cap.
'Affordability is at the center of everything we're doing at the Board, and that means making sure New Jersey families can access the aid they need to manage their utility bills,' said NJBPU President Ben Hertz-Shargel. DCA Commissioner Jacquelyn A. Suárez said the increased monthly benefits and expanded outreach can provide meaningful relief for families on tight budgets.
One application covers both USF and the federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), through the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs application portal. LIHEAP provides lump-sum help with heating, electric and deliverable-fuel costs, and also covers medically necessary cooling, emergency aid when a household faces disconnection, and heating system repair or replacement. Its application period runs from October 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027, processed first-come, first-served while funding remains. Income limits and eligibility details are posted on the state's energy assistance website, and residents can call 1-800-510-3102 for information.
USF enrollment also opens access to the Fresh Start energy debt forgiveness program and to shutoff protections in winter and summer; the state's Winter Termination Program protects qualifying households from disconnection from November 15 through March 15. The state's seven gas and electric utilities are required to help first-time applicants apply, and in the last program year they enrolled more than 8,000 first-time USF participants statewide, exceeding the first-year target.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：位于 Trenton 的新泽西州议会大厦（资料图）。Smallbones 摄，CC0，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / The New Jersey State House in Trenton (file photo). Photo by Smallbones, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
