Thousands of needy families will gain reduction in electricity bill

The economical committee of the Knesset, headed by MK Carmel Shama- Hacohen, held a second control seating on Sunday after applying the amendment to the law of electricity market, which the chairman initiated, and maintained that one has to extend the circle of those eligible for reduction in the electricity bill.
The amendment was meant to add another 65 thousand entitled from the lower strata in the population, for a benefit of social electricity.

The chairman Shama-Hacohen mentioned that in the previous discussion the committee discovered that reductions were not given to those entitled, since the IDF and the Bituach Leumi (social Security) did not transfer the data to the electricity company.
In today's discussion, representative of Bituach Leumi, Chava Liberman, reported that next Wednesday the institution will transfer to the electricity company the list of disabled patients, disabled children and those who suffer of harsh disability – most of those who are eligible for a reduction (about 60 thousand). According to her, the Social Security will send an announcement to single-parent mothers who are entitled to a reduction, in order to get their agreement to pass the data to the electricity company. The IDF representative, helper of the head of service and war condition department, Lieut. Li Zore'a, reported to the chairman after the discussion that the fault because of which the data was not transferred yet, has not yet been corrected, but never the less this week already the IDF will transfer to Bituach Leumi a disc with the data of single soldiers who are eligible for reduction.

As recalled, about 6 months ago, in the framework of the amendment to the law of electricity market and prolonging the licenses of the electricity company, the chairman Shama-Hacohen asked to check the application of the benefit of social electricity which came into force in 2007.

It then became clear to the committee that out of the 250 million shekels which were allocated for the benefit, only 100 million shekels are used. Therefore the committee approved, with the initiative of the chairman, to increase the number of entitled to the benefit, and added another about 65 thousand people from the lower classes, among them harsh disabled, elderly in a harsh condition, children with a severe disability, single parents with 3 children and more who get Havtachat Hachnasa (income complementation), single soldiers and other.

Chairman Shama-Hacohen even asked the electricity authority to consider advertising the benefit publically in newspapers, in order to increase transparency and help those potentially eligible to realize the benefit. "The effect of public publication which would encourage the public to materialize it, is nothing in comparison to its cost", the chairman said.

'בחדרי' גם ברשתות החברתיות - הצטרפו!