Benco Electric Cooperative Caring Members utility bill assistance

Benco Electric Cooperative Caring Members is used to help customers that are both facing a crisis and that are considered to be at risk if their utilities were to be shut off. The way the program works is that donations are collected from across individuals and businesses in the community (with matching grants from Benco Electric Cooperative) and all of these funds are given to help keep the lights and heat on.

Caring Members was created to serve as a last resort for senior or disabled customers that are out of LIHEAP funds and can't get any other form of help. It will also be for those households that have a young child living there or maybe a senior citizen or disabled person. Since it is a donation based service, it will only help a small number of families pay their utility bills in an emergency.

Benco Electric Cooperative Caring Members donations and contributions

Money raised from the community is used collected by the company as well as their non-profit partners. All of the donations, whether it is $1 or $50, will always be greatly appreciated and is used wisely. The contributions are not used to pay any overhead expenses or salaries of employees, but it will instead by spent locally to help the less fortunate.

There are different ways to donate. One, and maybe the most common, is for a private customer or business to round up their monthly utility bill to the next highest dollar amount. This is a recurring contribution to Benco Electric Cooperative Caring Members and it can be started or stopped at any time. The maximum donation made per month for the round up is 50 cents. While it may not sound like much, if hundreds or thousands of people do this it adds up.

Another option is to make a one time contribution. This can be any dollar amount that someone wants to make. Similar to the round up service indicated above, this type of contribution is also tax deductible. The state of Minnesota as well as federal government allow it.

 

 

 

Assistance provided by Benco Electric Cooperative Caring Members

Using all those various contributions indicated above, the financial aid for paying utility or heating bills is for the following situations. There may be money available for senior citizens whose health is at risk without heat or electricity. There may also be utility bill assistance for the sick that need to power up medical equipment, or there can be aid for children with a disability. Other exceptions can be made on a case by case basis by either Benco Electric Cooperative or their partners such as Minnesota Valley Action Council, but the bottom line is this is a one-time, crisis type service.

Cash issued from Caring Members will never be given directly to the applicant. Instead all of the money is applied directly towards paying those utility bills that are in question. This will also ensure that the donation program is not abused, as it allows less fraud and other conflicts to take place.

When applying for assistance, be prepared with proof of hardship, income, and details on why assistance for energy bills is needed. There is a rather strict application process for Benco Electric Cooperative Caring Members, and the income scale is also loosely based on that used for LIHEAP.

To learn more, to donate, or to apply for Caring Members, call the company at community action at 507-345-6822.