The Lockhart City Council on Tuesday, October 20 voted to extend a program that helps utilities customers experiencing COVID-19-related financial hardships pay their utility bills.

Billing cycles eligible for consideration under the city’s Emergency Utility Relief Grant program now include March 2020 (cycle 2) through December 2020 (cycle 1).

The Council’s action on Tuesday also eliminated the requirement that an applicant’s household income be at or below the federal threshold for low income and expands the program’s eligibility to all City of Lockhart utility accounts.

Despite the removal of the income requirement, city utility customers must still meet all requirements identified below to qualify for financial assistance through the program:

• Applicants must be experiencing a financial hardship due to job loss or income reduction related to COVID-19.
• Applicants must be City of Lockhart customers with active utility accounts.
• Applicants must be City of Lockhart customers under whose name the utility account is registered and established.

Eligible utility items include:

• Services including electric, water, wastewater and solid waste
• Monthly service charges for utility services
• Late payment penalty
• Service disconnection fee

The funding source for the Emergency Utility Relief Grant program is from the City of Lockhart’s allotment of Coronavirus Relief Fund from the Texas Department of Emergency Management authorized under the CARES Act.

For more information and to access an application, call Lockhart City Hall at (512)398-3461 or click here.