In The News

PHILADELPHIA’S RENTAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM OFFERS RELIEF TO PGW CUSTOMERS

Customers may qualify for up to $2,000 to help with their PGW bills plus rent assistance

PHILADELPHIA (April 27, 2021) – Philadelphia Gas Works’ (PGW) customers who have been financially impacted by the pandemic may be eligible for up to $2,000 for their past-due PGW bills through Phase 4 of Philadelphia’s COVID-19 Emergency Rental and Utility Assistance Program.

PGW recommends that customers visit PHLRentAssist.org immediately to apply for relief which is open to both tenants and landlords, and provides rental, gas, electric and water assistance. Under the program’s guidelines, utility payments:

• Can be provided for up to 18 months total;
• Must have been accrued on or after March 13, 2020;
• Can only be for the current month and past due utility payments; and
• Go directly to the utility provider (PGW). 

Tenants who previously received assistance program funding can apply for Phase 4 only for the months in which they have not received prior assistance. Landlords applying on behalf of an eligible tenant must have the tenant’s written permission. The program is administered by the Philadelphia Housing Development Corporation and is open until funding runs out.

“PGW is grateful to the City for expanding the Rental Assistance Program to our customers who face ongoing financial challenges due to the prolonged health crisis,” said Craig White, President and CEO of Philadelphia Gas Works. “This relief funding will help PGW customers continue to enjoy their natural gas service, avoid debt, and give them some peace of mind.”

PGW is also encouraging customers to apply for a free Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) grant in an amount of up to $1,000 before the April 30 deadline. Customers can call PGW’s Customer Care Team at 215-235-1000, Mon. - Fri., 8 a.m. - 6 p.m., to receive a LIHEAP application or print the application at pgworks.com/liheap.

PGW will provide information on the Rental and Utility Assistance Program, as well as other PGW payment assistance options, at COVID-19 vaccination sites throughout the city.

For more information, visit pgworks.com/residential/customer-care/payment-assistance

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PGW HELPS CUSTOMERS BECOME MORE ENERGY EFFICIENT

PGW’s Marketplace expands savings on smart thermostats to help customers conserve energy

PHILADELPHIA (April 21, 2021) –Philadelphia Gas Works’ (PGW) Marketplace is giving customers a new incentive to lower their energy consumption and reduce their home heating costs. New price reductions on smart thermostats available through the Marketplace, combined with an instant $70 PGW rebate, make it more economical for PGW customers to purchase the energy-saving devices.

Smart thermostats can be controlled by a cell phone and include features like motion sensors, alerts, and integration with other smart devices, enabling customers to conserve energy. In alignment with the Earth Day 2021 theme of “Restore our Earth,” the energy efficiency gained through smart thermostats is effective in lowering carbon emissions and combating climate change, and also complements PGW’s suite of energy conservation programs.

“On this Earth Day, PGW reflects on our commitment to reduce emissions, and encourage our customers to become more energy efficient,” said Janelle Johnson-Grummert, Director of Sustainability, at PGW. “As we work each day to meet Philadelphia’s energy needs by safely delivering natural gas – the clean, reliable, and affordable energy solution – we also challenge ourselves to make choices that are good for the environment, from helping our customers reduce emissions with rebates, promoting combined heat and power and liquefied natural gas,  reducing the carbon footprint at our facilities, operating a fleet of vehicles fueled by compressed natural gas, and finding new ways that customers can conserve energy.”

In addition to PGW’s Marketplace, customers can also take advantage of PGW’s EnergySense program, which offers rebates of $350 - $1,300 for purchasing high efficiency heaters and hot water heaters, as well as rebates for commercial appliances.

PGW’s environmental efforts also include:

• PGW’s Home Comfort program offers free energy weatherization services to selected qualifying low-income customers. In just over a decade, PGW has invested $60 million to weatherize 23,660 low-income customer homes and 22 multi-family buildings (with a majority of low-income tenants) in Philadelphia. The average residential customer reduced their home energy usage by an estimated 13 percent in the first year after weatherization.
• Awarding more than 6,700 residential, commercial, and industrial customers efficiency rebates and grants (from 2011 to 2020), at a cost of $10.3 million. On average, residential customers save over $150 in utility costs during the first year after installation.
• Incentivizing developers and builders through PGW’s EnergySense program to implement energy-efficient construction practices by offering Residential Construction Grants worth up to $1,400 per home.

These initiatives have had a combined impact of reducing carbon by 929,000 metric tons, or planting over 15.3 million trees.

For more information on PGW’s sustainability programs, visit PGWEnergySense.com or pgworks.com/community-impact/sustainability.

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PGW REMINDS RESIDENTS AND CONTRACTORS TO KNOW WHAT’S BELOW FOR NATIONAL SAFE DIGGING MONTH

Always call 811 before digging to avoid potential injuries and
service disruptions caused by damaging buried utilities
 

PHILADELPHIA (April 13, 2021) –Throughout April, Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW) will recognize National Safe Digging Month by reminding contractors and residents to call 811, or visit pa1call.org, before starting a project that requires underground excavation (digging) or any building demolition work no matter the size of the project. In Pennsylvania, residents and contractors are legally required to call the Pennsylvania One Call System 3 to 10 business days prior to beginning a project in order to report where underground excavation is planned.

Calling 811, Pennsylvania’s “One Call” system, will alert PGW along with other utilities to identify and mark their service or distribution lines near the proposed worksite to prevent injuries, property damage, and inconvenient and costly utility outages. This service is free to any homeowner working on their residential property.
 

Safe digging is a shared responsibility among excavators, homeowners, and facility owners. The Common Ground Alliance (CGA), a member-driven association committed to raising the public’s awareness of underground safety, conducted a recent survey where approximately four in ten homeowners stated that they plan to dig on their property this year for an outdoor home or property improvement project. Of those homeowners who plan to dig, 45 percent did not plan to call 811 before they dig. Two-thirds of homeowners surveyed believe they would not hit an unmarked underground utility line or cause a service outage if they dug without calling 811.

In 2019, the costs of damages to buried utilities in the U.S. was estimated at $30 billion.
 

PGW also encourages City residents to call 811 to report any suspect contractor that may be digging without a valid Pennsylvania One Call ticket in place, which alerts all facility owners of a possible safety concern. Job sites that do not have visible paint or flag markings onsite should be reported to 811. Natural gas lines are identified and marked by yellow paint or flags. Yellow is specific to natural gas, steam, and petroleum pipelines.

For more information about safe digging practices, please visit, https://www.pgworks.com/customer-care/your-business/builders-contractors.

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About PGW:

Founded in 1836, The Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW) is owned by the City of Philadelphia and is the largest municipally owned gas utility in the country. It manages a distribution system of approximately 6,000 miles of gas mains and service pipes supplying approximately 500,000 customers. PGW's operations are managed by a non-profit corporation, the Philadelphia Facilities Management Corporation (PFMC). More information about the company is available at pgworks.com. 

SOCIAL MEDIA TAGS: PGW Twitter: @MyPGW ~ PGW Facebook: facebook.com/MyPGW ~ PGW Instagram @mypgw ~ PGW YouTube: PhillyGasWorks ~ Nextdoor: nextdoor.com/MyPG

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