As winter weather and the impacts of the federal government shutdown roll across Colorado, programs are available to help people around Colorado Springs pay their utility bills.

Colorado Springs Utilities reminded customers that the federally funded Low-Income Energy Assistance Program, or LEAP, will open for applications on Nov. 1 despite the government shutdown. Smaller programs to help families unable to pay utility bills this winter are also available in Colorado Springs and Fountain.

The Low-income Energy Assistance Program offers aid to families who fall behind on heating and utility bills during the coldest half of the year. According to data from the state Department of Human Services, a total of 88,000 families in Colorado used the federal assistance program between November 2024 and April this year.

There were 11,300 customers in El Paso County who successfully applied for LEAP assistance last winter, according to state data. More than 9,000 of those customers were in the service area for Colorado Springs Utilities.

Utilities Community Relations Supervisor April Speake said the LEAP funds were provided to each state at the beginning of the year and are up to each state to administer. Because Colorado has the funding on hand, the program will not be immediately affected by the government shutdown

“We feel like there is enough funding to keep up with November and December. We might have to adjust our plans when we get to 2026,” Speake said.

Colorado Springs residents who want to apply for LEAP can do so by calling Pikes Peak United Way, which manages the program on behalf of Utilities.

A second, year-round bill assistance program called Project COPE is directly run by Colorado Springs Utilities. Project COPE is open to families who make too much to qualify for the federal program but might need short-term assistance to cover their utility bills.

Speake said demand for both programs has been increasing over the last few years. More than 1,900 families received assistance from Project COPE by the end of September, which was on track to pass last year’s total of 2,431 customers who received aid. Speake said the program might see another surge in the next few weeks if the impacts of the federal shutdown spread.

“When the costs are going up for food and gas and rent, families can start to fall behind on utilities. The demand now is as strong as ever,” Speake said.

Fountain Utilities sent out a statement Wednesday advising customers who might be impacted by the government shutdown to ask for assistance before they fell behind on their payments.

Fountain Utilities Director Dan Blankenship said Fountain supplied power to a large number of military families or veterans. While many of those families will likely receive pay during the shutdown, Blankenship said the concerns about utility bills were still top of mind for many people.

“We felt it was an excellent time to remind people of the programs we have available and encourage those folks who might be having a struggle, for whatever reason, to apply,” Blankenship said.

Fountain has its own dedicated assistance program called Lighten the Load, administered by the Salvation Army, that families can apply for help through before they fall behind on their bills. Blankenship said residents should also call if they need to set up a payment system or check their eligibility for other programs.