Customer Assistance

We promote programs designed to provide assistance to customers in the areas of financial assistance, energy and water efficiency improvements, furnace services, and conservation. The assistance programs include: Citizens Option to Provide Energy (Project COPE), Energy Resource Center (ERC), Home Efficiency Assistance Program (HEAP) and Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP).

Project COPE
Project COPE provides assistance to Colorado Springs Utilities residential customers facing utilities disconnection. Project COPE is a Springs Utilities program supported by voluntary contributions from local residents and businesses. For a referral to a Project COPE agency near you, call 211, Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

To be eligible for Project COPE assistance, you:

1. Must be a Colorado Springs Utilities customer and a U.S. citizen, or a legal permanent resident, or legally present in the U.S.; and
2. Must have received a Colorado Springs Utilities disconnect notice; and
3. Must be experiencing an emergency situation; and
4. Must first apply for LEAP assistance. If LEAP assistance is no longer available, or if you do not qualify for LEAP, you may apply for Project COPE.

Eligible customers may receive assistance annually through grants not to exceed $350.

Energy Resource Center - ERC
Springs Utilities provides customer referrals for ERC services. ERC provides free weatherization, insulation and furnace services for low-income customers. Customers must have monthly gross household incomes at or below 185 percent of federal poverty guidelines (please see the LEAP table below). Customers currently receiving LEAP, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Supplemental Security Income or MEDICAID assistance automatically qualify for ERC services.

Customers should contact ERC directly at 719-591-0772 for other eligibility criteria and application procedures.

Home Efficiency Assistance Program - HEAP
HEAP is a partnership between Springs Utilities and the Energy Resource Center, and provides free* energy and water efficiency improvements for eligible Colorado Springs Utilities residential customers. 

To be eligible for HEAP services, you:

1. Must own the property you live in; and
2. Must reside in a single family home, townhouse, condo, multifamily unit (duplex or four-plex) or mobile/modular/manufactured home; and
3. Must have a household gross income at or below 250 percent of federal poverty guidelines.

Contact the Energy Resource Center at 719-591-0772 to apply for HEAP.

*All HEAP services are free except furnace replacement. Customers requiring a furnace replacement must contribute $500 toward the purchase of a new, 80 percent or greater efficient furnace.

Low-Income Energy Assistance Program - LEAP
LEAP is a federally-funded program that provides financial assistance to help customers pay their winter heating costs. In El Paso County, Goodwill Industries administers LEAP for the Colorado Department of Human Services (CDHS). Applications for LEAP are accepted from Nov. 1 through April 30 each year.

You may qualify for LEAP assistance if:

1. You are a Colorado resident and a U.S. citizen or a legal permanent resident or legally present in the U.S.; and
2. You pay a heating bill to an energy provider or your heat is included in your rent; and
3. Your gross monthly household income is at or below 185 percent of federal poverty guidelines.