If we got all of the people in Iola together in a big circle and had half of them take one step backward, those stepping backward would still not represent the number of folks in our community who live at or below 200% of the poverty level. And 27% of those people live in poverty. The rest are surviving at just 200% of the poverty level.
Wherever you are, half of the folks surrounding you are struggling with issues related to living in poverty. There is never enough food or enough money for rent, gasoline, medicine, or utilities.
The struggle shows on some faces, but not on everyones.
One of the issues that we see over and over are people struggling with utilities. Most of the time their problem isnt a lack of funds; its that the dont have all of the funds they need by the due date, perhaps because their disability checks arrive a day or two after the shut-off date or because their wages are low and hours have been cut. Circumstance has put them in a cycle of always being late and never being able to catch up.
Right now, our city has $500,000 in unpaid utilities. Much of that is owed by those who have had to leave town because they could not afford to have their utilities turned back on.
Iolas current policy gives a person 28 days to pay their bill, after which a notice is sent with a 5% late fee added. People who cant come up with the entire new amount due in 12 days have their electricity shut off. To have it turned back on, they must pay the bill, the 5% late fee, and another late fee of $25. If the reconnection is made after 4 p.m., theres an additional $75 late fee. After 10 more days, water and gas are also shut off, and an additional $25 late fee is applied.
At this point the person must come up with the past due amount, the 5% late fee, first additional $25 late fee, the third $25 late fee and their current bill to have their utilities turned on.
How can we not see these utility policies as punitive? We should all have the right to food, shelter, and heat no matter how much or little money we have.
Heres how this plays out for many of the poor people living in Iola.
If a disabled person is trying to survive on $783 a month, the limit allowed for an individual dependent on the Social Security Disability Insurance program, and they receive a $300 utility bill that is due the day before their support check arrives, theyll lose 2% of that monthly income because of Iolas due date policy.
If their check comes 11 days after the utility due date, their power is cut off and they have to pay an additional 5% of their monthly income. They have no electricity and have to come up with $340 to have power again. In the meantime, food spoils; there is no heat; they have no lights. They might be elderly or disabled. There could be children in the home. Or they may be the working poor.
They now have $443 to live on for a month. That has to cover food (food assistance allowance is $17$50 for an individual), medicine (if they dont qualify for Medicaid), rent, and the upcoming utility bill for the next month.
If the person does not have enough funds to cover their utility bill before the next one arrives, and they cannot pay their previous bill and all of the fees, then another $25 fee is added, all of their utilities are off, and they must pay the past due $300, the current $300, and $65 in late fees. This month they have $118 to cover rent, food, and every expense associated with being alive.
We will be going before city council on Feb. 10 to ask them to adopt a policy thats less punitive for poor people and more humane for everyone.
All we are asking is for the city to adopt a promise-to-pay policy that would allow people to pay when their check comes in so they can avoid the late fees that put them further and further into poverty.
