The Customer Assistance Program has seen a steady rise in the number of unique participants since March of 2020 when the COVID-19 Pandemic began.

Under the program, qualifying Austin Energy customers receive a waiver of the $10 monthly electric customer charge; are exempt from paying the portion of the community benefit charge that supports the Utility Bill Discount Program; and they receive a 10% discount on their kWh usage charge. Austin Water customers also receive a discount on the water/wastewater customer charge as well as a volumetric discount on a customer’s water usage. Watershed Protection provides a 50% discount on the drainage fee. Public Works under a separate qualification waives the transportation user fee.

In response to COVID-19, the City of Austin has implemented a Bill Relief Program to provide further assistance to customers who have been financially impacted. In addition to increases in benefits offered through the Customer Assistance Program,electric charges have been reduced by 32% for residential and commercial customers, which will result in approximately a 4% reduction of the total bill.

Note: There is no target for the Customer Assistance Program participation. While the number of unique participants in the program is used for planning, budget, accounting, and reporting purposes, it is not a measure of success.

Changes in enrollment are impacted by a variety of factors, including the median income of Austin Residents, the ability to identify participants and automatically enroll them, the wrap-around services offered to participants by both City departments and community providers, and expansions to the program itself.

The biggest shift recently is a break of of the downward trend that began in FY 2018 and lasted until the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March of 2020.

Note: To see the underlying data for this chart, please select the "View Source Data" link.

Date page was last updated: March 2021