OTHER RESOURCES

Dial 2-1-1 toll free to learn about social services that could be available to you. 2-1-1 is the social service equivalent of 9-1-1. You can also do your own search for services by going to www.pa211nw.org.

All residential customers may contact their electric or natural gas company and request budget billing at any time. Each monthly bill will be the same amount. The company may adjust the bill four times a year, up or down, depending on the customer’s usage.
Penelec: 800-545-7741
National Fuel: 800-444-3130

CAPs can lower your monthly utility bill. CAPs may also remove the amount you already owe. The different CAP names are shown beside the company names below. The company works with the customer to determine what the customer can pay verses the cost of energy used.
Penelec (PCAP): 800-962-4848

The CARES program helps customers with special needs. CARES may help you find ways to pay your utility bill. For example, special needs are customers who are experiencing family emergencies, divorce, unemployment, or medical emergencies. The goal is to provide support and direction to help customers pay their utility bills.

LIURP helps low-income residential customers lower the amount of electricity or natural gas used each month. Typically, the company may install energy saving features in your home to help reduce bills. For example, smaller bills means your payment covers a greater portion of the bill, or perhaps covers the whole bill.
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Utility company hardship funds provide cash assistance to utility customers to help them pay their utility bills. Hardship funds provide assistance grants to customers who “fall through the cracks” of other financial assistance programs, or to those who still have a critical need for assistance after the other resources have been exhausted. The funds make payments directly to companies on behalf of eligible customers.
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LIHEAP is the federal program that provides financial assistance to needy households for home energy bills. In Pennsylvania, the Department of Public Welfare (DPW) administers the LIHEAP program. The LIHEAP program provides both cash and crisis benefits to low-income households. Cash benefits help low-income customers pay for their home energy needs while crisis payments help meet emergency home energy situations.
Visit LIHEAP Website
LIHEAP Application

Assistance Qualifications

Customers must meet certain income limits and be payment-troubled to qualify for CAP, CARES, LIURP and Hardship Funds. Payment-troubled usually means customers have made a payment agreement with the company. Customers should call their local electric or natural gas company for details to see if you qualify.

888-282-6816
Administered By: Dollar Energy Fund

877-346-7384

800-360-2998

• Eligibility: Works through public and private service agencies to determine need
• Services: Provides for basic clothing and other needs

• Eligibility: Children in need
• Services: Provides back to school clothing for children in need, “Operation Overcoat”
• For more information or to apply:
  • Associated Charities Food Pantry
    409 East Central Ave., Titusville PA 16354
    Phone: 814-827-6613

• Eligibility: Based on need
• Services: Free or low-cost food
Click here for a listing of our Crawford County food pantries

956 South Main Street
Meadville, PA 16335
Phone: 814-337-1233

• Eligibility: Persons age 60 and up.
• Services: Nutritious food delivered to your home.
• For more information:
  • Active Aging, Inc. at 1-800-321-7705 or 814-336-1792

• Eligibility: Pregnant and breastfeeding women, other new mothers up to one year postpartum, infants, children up to their sixth birthday, and elderly persons at least 60 years of age who meet income eligibility requirements.
• Services: Provides food packages that include infant formula and cereal, non-fat dry and evaporated milk, juice, oats, pasta, peanut butter, canned meat, tuna, or poultry, and canned fruits and vegetables.
• For more information:
  • Terri Sopher, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture at Tel: 814-609-6133.

• *Federal Food Stamp Program
• Eligibility: Varies by household income.
• Services: SNAP makes food assistance benefits available to all eligible households regardless of race, sex, religious creed, national origin, or political beliefs.
• For more information or to apply:
  • Crawford County Assistance Office, 1084 Water Street, Meadville, PA 16335, Tel: 814-333-3400 or 1-800-527-7861.

• *Federal Food Stamp Program
• Eligibility: Varies by household income.
• Services: SNAP makes food assistance benefits available to all eligible households regardless of race, sex, religious creed, national origin, or political beliefs.
• For more information or to apply:
  • Crawford County Assistance Office, 1084 Water Street, Meadville, PA 16335, Tel: 814-333-3400 or 1-800-527-7861.

944 Liberty Street
Meadville, PA 16335
Phone: (814) 333-2924
Fax: (814) 337-0008
chapsweb@chapsinc.org
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201 North Franklin Street
Titusville, PA 16354
Phone: (814) 827-2746
Fax: (814) 827-9777

204 Spring St
Meadville, PA 16335
Office phone: (814) 724.4637
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• Eligibility: Families with children and children 18 and under.
• Services: Provided to children and families when it is deemed that a child is at risk for abuse or neglect. The goal is to safely maintain children and families in their homes whenever possible in the least restrictive fashion possible. Services range from assistance with homemaking skills, to parenting classes, anger management, in home counseling and mentoring.
• For more information:
  • Crawford County Children and Youth Services at 814-724-8380, after 4:30 PM call County Control at 814-724-2548 or CHILDLINE at 1-800-932-0313.

• Eligibility: Services vary based on household income.
• Benefits: CCIS agencies provide you and your family with information on quality child care and personalized child care referrals to providers based on your specific needs or preferences. CCIS agencies also administer the Child Care Works subsidized child care program.
• For more information:
  • CCIS of Crawford County at 814-337-8055 or 1-800-682-6118.

• Available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• For more information:
  • 814-724-2732 or 1-800-315-5721.

• The Crawford County Warmline program is a non-emergency peer support telephone service.
• The phone is answered seven days per week from 5:00pm-8:00pm (excluding holidays). All calls are confidential.
• For more information:
  • 814-724-5161 or 1-800-951-2055

For information about fair housing law check out this website: HUD- Housing and Urban Development