Could you qualify for NYS's expanded energy subsidies?

You might be eligible for a discount on your home utility bill and not know it.

You wouldn’t be alone.

While New York officials greatly expanded the threshold to qualify for the state’s energy subsidies, millions of households have yet to sign up.

Now there’s a push to raise awareness so people can enroll in a subsidy known as the Energy Assistance Program.

It’s been around for a while and through it low-income and qualified homeowners receive discounts on their utility bills — up to $500 annually.

Do you qualify?

You are automatically enrolled if you’re a homeowner who receives other forms of public assistance, such as Medicaid, food benefits, veterans’ disability or temporary assistance for needy families. About 1 million homeowners have enrolled this way.

But in recent years, state lawmakers and the Public Service Commission, which regulates utilities, expanded the eligibility threshold to cover many more New Yorkers.

As of January, you qualify if your household income is below the state median income, or below area median income in New York City, Westchester and Nassau and Suffolk counties.

This means another 2.5 million households across the state now are eligible — but very few have signed up so far.

On Long Island, a family of three, for example, qualifies if the household income is less than $148,450, according to Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office. A family of four with an annual income less than $164,900 also qualifies.

Push for applicants

The governor launched an enrollment drive this week.

“Right now, 2.5 million eligible New Yorkers are leaving money on the table and I'm on a mission to help keep the lights on and costs down by launching an all-of-government push to get them enrolled in this money-saving program,” Hochul said in a statement.

Details about enrolling and eligibility guidelines can be found at ny.gov/EAP.

Campaign issue

Hochul and Bruce Blakeman, the Republican Nassau County executive who is challenging her, have tried to make skyrocketing utility costs a campaign issue.

While Hochul is blaming Trump administration energy policies and the war in Iran for the increased cost of energy, Blakeman is blaming it on New York taxes and the Democrat’s backing of green energy projects.

On Monday, Hochul announced the state will soon begin mailing utility rebate checks of up to $200 to 8.2 million households statewide to qualifying residents based on their 2024 tax returns. The rebate plan was initially touted by Republican state legislators, then adopted by the Democrat-led Assembly and Senate and backed by Hochul.

Blakeman, at news conference Tuesday in Howard Beach, called the rebates a “scam” that won’t make a dent in most household budgets.

“We give her thousands of dollars, and what is she giving us? Peanuts!” he said while shaking a plastic container of Planters peanuts.

Newsday’s Bahar Ostadan contributed to this story.

By Yancey Roy

yancey.roy@newsday.com@yanceyroy