Heating oil, housing market, affordability in Vermont

Oh, in short, they're very high.

Uh, last year, heating oil prices hit $6 a gallon.

That's compared to about 3.55 in January.

Mm.

Uh, so this is a massive uptick in people's expense.

And for especially low-income households or households on fixed incomes, this is gonna be one of their massive expenses going into the cold season.

Uh, and, you know, a doubling almost of prices is n- nowhere near when Social Security checks go up a few, few percentage points, uh, with inflation.

So I think it's, I think it's something that people are really concerned about from what I'm hearing.

Let me take a guess at what's driving some of these higher prices right now.

Is it the war in Iran?

Yeah, I think the war in Iran.

Uh, you know, 10% of, uh, diesel goes through the, the Strait of Hormuz, and I think the, the cutting off of that has been a huge factor.

But the other one that has hit the news more in the last week is the, uh, strikes between Ukraine and Russia on oil refineries.

Russia is a major supplier of, of diesel to the world, and, uh, Ukrainian attacks on their oil facilities have really, uh, you know, hampered the world's diesel supply.

Sounds like a perfect storm, uh, happening at the worst, uh, time.

I mean, right now, you know, it's October.

We're getting towards November.

It's gonna start getting real cold in the state of Vermont.

One of the things you wrote about in your article was LIHEAP, uh, a program that a lot of low-income Vermonters rely on.

Tell us a little bit about LIHEAP and what are some of the, uh, dangers that are posed to it right now.

Yeah.

So the Low Income Heating, uh, Energy Assistance Program, uh, is an important program for low-income people across the country to help afford their heating and cooling, uh, needs.

And this year, it's about a $4 bil- billion fund, uh, that goes out to states, and it's distributed from the federal government.

Uh, but President Trump has repeatedly railed against LIHEAP.

Uh, he's tried to defund it multiple times.

Oh, in short, they're very high.

Uh, last year, heating oil prices hit $6 a gallon.

That's compared to about 3.55 in January.

Mm.

Uh, so this is a massive uptick in people's expense.

And for especially low-income households or households on fixed incomes, this is gonna be one of their massive expenses going into the cold season.

Uh, and, you know, a doubling almost of prices is n- nowhere near when Social Security checks go up a few, few percentage points, uh, with inflation.

So I think it's, I think it's something that people are really concerned about from what I'm hearing.

Let me take a guess at what's driving some of these higher prices right now.

Is it the war in Iran?

Yeah, I think the war in Iran.

Uh, you know, 10% of, uh, diesel goes through the, the Strait of Hormuz, and I think the, the cutting off of that has been a huge factor.

But the other one that has hit the news more in the last week is the, uh, strikes between Ukraine and Russia on oil refineries.

Russia is a major supplier of, of diesel to the world, and, uh, Ukrainian attacks on their oil facilities have really, uh, you know, hampered the world's diesel supply.

Sounds like a perfect storm, uh, happening at the worst, uh, time.

I mean, right now, you know, it's October.

We're getting towards November.

It's gonna start getting real cold in the state of Vermont.

One of the things you wrote about in your article was LIHEAP, uh, a program that a lot of low-income Vermonters rely on.

Tell us a little bit about LIHEAP and what are some of the, uh, dangers that are posed to it right now.

Yeah.

So the Low Income Heating, uh, Energy Assistance Program, uh, is an important program for low-income people across the country to help afford their heating and cooling, uh, needs.

And this year, it's about a $4 bil- billion fund, uh, that goes out to states, and it's distributed from the federal government.

Uh, but President Trump has repeatedly railed against LIHEAP.

Uh, he's tried to defund it multiple times.