Heating Oil Could Cost Taxpayers Triple

Price Prediction: $5 Per Gallon — 30% Above Last Winter's Record

Photo: Arthur S. Aubry / Getty Images

By Dan Shapley

In the quaint days of $100 a barrel oil, back in January, the colder parts of the world gasped when heating oil hit record-high prices. After all, you can carpool, bike or take public transit to save on gas, but there are fewer options when it comes to keeping your bones warm through the long winter nights.

Every taxpayer might well faint this winter, with oil still trading at $133 a barrel, down from its peak (fingers crossed) at $147.

House members from New England are going to ask Congress to more than triple the yearly assistance to low-income homeowners who may have trouble paying for oil this winter, according to the Boston Globe. Last year, Congress spent $2.6 billion on the program. These lawmakers are asking for $9 billion. (A different proposal in the Senate would nearly double funding, to $5.1 billion.) House lawmakers would also like another $1 billion to spend on weatherization — the wise investment in insulation, modern windows and other items that keep heating costs down year after year.

Last year, heating oil cost the average U.S. household $3.85 per gallon (before taxes) by the end of March, more than a dollar more than the start of the heating season in October. This year, the Globe predicted per-gallon costs of up to $5. That would amount to a 30% increase over last year's record.

Get ready now, with these 5 Ways to Beat Record-High Oil Prices.

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