Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) has launched a campaign titled, “SoCalGas CAREs” for customers whose income may have recently changed due to COVID-19 or other reasons. The campaign aims to let customers know of their eligibility to qualify for SoCalGas’ assistance program, California Alternate Rates for Energy or CARE, saving them 20 percent on their monthly natural gas bills. Over the next several weeks, SoCalGas will begin running both social media and television ads promoting the “SoCalGas CAREs” campaign.
“SoCalGas is committed to assisting the communities we serve during this challenging period,” said Jeff Walker, vice president of Customer Solutions at SoCalGas. “We recognize that many families are facing unexpected hardships such as job and income loss right now and we want to remind them that SoCalGas’ assistance programs like CARE can help.”
The CARE program aids people in paying their utility bills by providing a 20 percent discount on monthly natural gas bills.
Customers who have become recently unemployed or who are currently facing financial hardship due to the coronavirus pandemic or for other reasons are encouraged to visit socalgas.com/care, complete the quick online application and find out instantly if they qualify. The CARE online application is available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese.
SoCalGas understands this is a challenging time for all and wants to assure customers natural gas service will be there for their communities. SoCalGas will continue to make safety and emergency service appointments, including reports of suspected natural gas leaks, carbon monoxide checks, gas meter turn-ons, natural gas outage and pilot re-lights. And we will continue to perform work needed to safely and reliably maintain infrastructure so we can continue to provide customers with safe and essential energy services.
Service disconnections have been suspended until further notice. This means no customer will have their natural gas turned off due to non-payment. SoCalGas has also temporarily waived late fees for small business customers. As a reminder, SoCalGas never charges late fees for residential customers.
Other customer assistance programs SoCalGas offers include:
Gas Assistance Fund
If you or someone you know is having difficulty paying your gas bill, the Gas Assistance Fund (GAF) may be able to provide you with a one-time grant for the amount of the gas bill, not to exceed $100.00.
The Gas Assistance Fund is a joint effort of SoCalGas and United Way of Greater Los Angeles. They work with non-profit partner organizations throughout our service territory to administer the program.
You may qualify for the Gas Assistance Fund based on your yearly household income.
Medical Baseline Allowance
The Medical Baseline Allowance program provides additional natural gas at the lowest baseline rate for individuals with a serious health condition.
You may qualify for the Medical Baseline Allowance if a full-time member of your household:
o Has a life-threatening illness or a compromised immune system o Is seriously disabled o Requires more heat in winter due to a serious health condition or to prevent deterioration of the individual’s medical condition Eligibility is based on medical condition only, not household income.
Visit socalgas.com/assistance for more information on how to know if you qualify for these pro
