Illinois Gas & Electric Energy Aid

Illinois Gas & Electric Energy Aid is a bill payment assistance program for customers who buy their electricity or natural gas from Illinois Gas & Electric, a retail energy supplier and part of Vistra Corp. Illinois Gas & Electric is not a utility company. Your local utility delivers your energy and sends your bill, and Illinois Gas & Electric appears on that bill as your supplier. This program uses donated funds to support customers in Illinois. Eligible customers may receive funds applied to their bill. The program provides assistance beyond what is available through federal, state, your utility and  other programs. Program guidelines and eligibility requirements are subject to change.

Program Dates

Open from January 1 through December 31 for services that are past due, under threat of disconnection, or already disconnected. You do not need a disconnect notice to qualify.

Funds are dispersed on a first come, first serve basis to eligible applicants while funding is available.

Who Can Apply:

This program is only for Illinois Gas & Electric supply customers. You may be eligible if Illinois Gas & Electric is listed as your supplier on a bill from one of these utilities:

• Nicor Gas
• North Shore Gas
• Peoples Gas Light & Coke

How to check: Look in the supply or generation section of your utility bill. If it doesn’t list Illinois Gas & Electric, you are not eligible for this program.

Only those customers who have selected Illinois Gas and Electric as their supplier are eligible for assistance through this program.

Proof of Emergency Situation

Individuals eligible for assistance are those who are experiencing an acute financial crisis due to a verifiable emergency and who have exhausted alternative resources. Emergency situations generally include:

• Job loss
• Inability to work due to illness or injury
• Medical expenses
• Utility service termination or threat of termination. You do not need a disconnect notice to qualify.
• Other extenuating circumstances that will endanger a vulnerable adult or child

Maximum Grant

The maximum grant amount an applicant may receive is $350.

Applicants can only receive one grant per utility, per program year. (1/1 – 12/31)

Grant awards are based on need and each family’s circumstances are different. Grant amounts are determined on a case-to-case basis.

If a customer’s utility service is off or in threat of termination when they apply and the maximum grant amount will not restore service or stop termination, the application will be denied. The amount needed to restore service or stop a termination is determined by utility review. Notification will be sent to the customer advising them that their application was denied and that an additional payment is required in order to be considered for assistance.

Additional Guidelines

• Account must be residential, single home or apartment. No “cooking only”, commercial, industrial, or apartments with shared utility service.
• Name on account must be that of an adult who is currently living in the home.
• Dollar Energy Fund grants cannot be used to cover security deposits or reconnection fees.

Income Guidelines

Total gross household income must be at or below 400% of the Federal Poverty Income Guidelines. Use our Income Calculator to find out if your gross (before tax) income is within the range of eligibility for the program.