OAI Weatherization Program to receive IIJA Funds

The weatherization program at Ozark Action, Inc. (OAI) is slated to get over $1.5 million for weatherization activities for the next half decade.

“We will receive a total of $1,641,013 in funding to help low-income homeowners and renters save a few dollars each month on their utility bills,” stated Ed Button, Housing Director at OAI.

Button says the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funding – which comes out to about $328,000 each year for the next 5 years – is in addition to the roughly $500,000 the program gets each year to weatherize homes.

“At this time, we are unsure when we’ll be able to proceed with this new funding, but we have submitted our 5-year budget and are completely thrilled to be able to help those in our region that need it the most, and we want to thank Congress for getting this through to the president’s desk.”

Weatherization services save residents about $31 each month on heating and cooling costs, or about $370 each year. During OAI’s last fiscal year from July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022, a total of 58 homes in the region were weatherized. Weatherization work mainly consists of insulating homes and trailers, along with minor repair work, heating system repairs, and window repairs. The average cost of work that is done per home is around $5,000.

To qualify for weatherization through Ozark Action, people must be at or below 200% of the federal poverty level, or $36,620 for a household of two and $55,500 for a household of four.

“Landlords who have low-income tenants can also take advantage of this service,” Button added, “We just request a small $200 contribution toward the work. But the tenant must be the person to apply.”

Right now, Button says OAI needs people to sign up for the service.

“Our waitlist has been short for some time now – around 4-6 months. Previously, people would wait years for weatherization services through OAI. I’ve said it before, but now is the perfect time to sign up for assistance.”

“This is an amazing opportunity for not only us to help those in need, but to help invigorate our local economies,” Button added. “We want to spend as much of this money as possible in our local area over the next five years, so please call us or visit our main office in West Plains or one of our outreach offices in Ava, Alton, Houston, Gainesville, Hartville, or Mountain Grove to sign up!”

Ozark Action, Inc. is a non-profit Community Action Agency serving the counties of Douglas, Howell, Oregon, Ozark, Texas, and Wright in South-Central Missouri. It was founded in 1965. The mission of OAI is to coordinate and provide services for people with needs so that they can improve their quality of life.

Several programs that help low-income residents are housed under the OAI umbrella including the Community Services department, which helps with homeless outreach, utility assistance for those in need, and the local Salvation Army; area Head Start programs, which provide educational opportunities to area children; the area Workforce office, which offers services such as job placement, training, workshops, and other career-related opportunities; the area Weatherization program; and the area Housing Choice Voucher program (HCV), formerly known as the Section 8 program, which provides rental assistance to the region.

People seeking to fill out an application for housing or weatherization assistance or one of the other many programs offered at Ozark Action will need to make an appointment by calling 417-256-6147.

For more information on Ozark Action and their services visit www.oaiwp.org.