Utility Company Emergency Assistance

Some gas and electric utilities offer cash assistance and special payment plans to consumers facing financial hardship.

PG&E

Relief for Energy Assistance Through Community Help (REACH) - The Relief for Energy Assistance through Community Help (REACH) program is for low-income customers who experience severe, uncontrollable or unplanned hardships and are unable to pay for their energy needs.
Budget Billing- The Budget Billing allows you to pay the same amount every month by averaging your household energy costs for the last 12 months.

Level Pay Plan - Edison's Level Pay Plan allows you to budget the cost of electric service into equal monthly payments, by spreading high summer or winter bills over an entire year.
Energy Assistance Fund - Edison's Energy Assistance Fund helps low-income customers in financial hardship with electric bills.
Residential Summer Discount Program - Edison's Residential Summer Discount Program provides credit for customers who permit Edison to install and use a device that allows Edison to remotely turn off the customer's air conditioner at high-peak hours. The amount of credit received is dependent upon how often the customer lets Edison use the device.

The Gas Assistance Fund (GAF) helps qualifying customers who are having difficulty paying their gas bills. This program, administrated by the United Way of Greater Los Angeles, is funded by donations from customers, shareholders and employees of The Gas Company®
The Level Pay Plan helps smooth out the ups and downs of monthly gas bill by averaging annual gas consumption and costs over a 12-month period. You pay an average bill amount each month instead of actual charges.

Neighbor to Neighbor - SDG&E's Neighbor to Neighbor program gives people financial help with their energy bills, and the fund is subsidized by SDG&E shareholders and employees. The money goes toward helping customers who do not qualify for any other assistance programs but can't pay their SDG&E bill due to temporary financial hardship. There is no income requirement but a need must be there, as in the case of temporary unemployment or a serious family illness.

If you need this assistance, call the numbers provided here (utilities also provide their phone numbers on their bills):

Phone Numbers for Energy Assistance Programs