The home heating assistance and energy supplement are part of the social benefits granted through the Oradea Social Assistance Directorate.

Content and role of documents

Document content – personal data, data regarding the income earned by applicants, and information regarding assets owned;

Role of documents - they form the basis for establishing or not granting the right to heating assistance/energy supplement, for modifying or ceasing the granting of these benefits; the establishment of rights is done by issuing the mayor's decision.

Document flow

- Documents forming the basis for the granting of assistance: Applications and sworn statements accompanied by supporting documents regarding family composition and income earned by its members are registered by applicants at the DAS Oradea headquarters - Public Relations and Initial Evaluation Service and at the Multifunctional Social Centers in the city neighborhoods; the data are processed in a computer program; at the end of the granting period (November – October) the archive is constituted;

- Institutional-use documents: Counselor - Head of Service - Executive Director - Mayor of Oradea - Thermal/gas/electricity provider – Bihor AJPIS/other institutions.

Applicants for home heating assistance/energy supplement submit their applications and sworn statements, accompanied by supporting documents regarding the family composition and income earned by its members, individually or through the owners'/tenants' associations, at the DAS Oradea headquarters – Public Relations and Initial Evaluation Service, and at the Multifunctional Social Centers in the city neighborhoods.

Monthly, counselors with responsibilities process in the computer system the newly registered applications/changes/cessations of rights for the period between the 21st of the month and the 20th of the following month; they verify the accuracy of declared data, establish rights, prepare referral notes and decisions, generate centralized reports with beneficiaries, and send them to energy providers and Bihor AJPIS; they compile Statistical Reports and send them to Bihor AJPIS; they verify the Lists including beneficiaries sent by suppliers, forward them for certification, and send them to Bihor AJPIS for settlement; they prepare Payment Statements for recipients of assistance/energy supplement for solid and/or liquid fuels.

Conducting operations and activity actions

- informing regarding legislative provisions in the field of heating assistance/energy supplement – assigned counselors from the Social Service;

- requests are made to the Economic – Financial and Administrative Service within DAS Oradea by Necessity Reference for materials/supplies needed for the smooth running of the activity;

- printing of the Application/Self-Declaration forms regarding occurred changes/Field Verification Form in collaboration with the Oradea City Hall, based on Internal Reference/Note addressed to the Department for expenditure monitoring and events organization;

- a written address is sent to the Economic Directorate of the Oradea City Hall and to the thermal energy provider requesting the local heating energy billing price for the population;

- intention letters are sent to institutions holding databases for the purpose of concluding protocols/additional documents for carrying out monthly verifications, during the entire benefits granting period (November – October), concerning income (salaries, allowances, pensions) / movable and immovable property of benefit applicants;

- the List of goods leading to exclusion from receiving assistance, the Inventory of necessary documents to be attached to applications, and the Income brackets for each of the 4 types of aid, will be posted electronically on the institution's website and also made available in printed form; these documents will also be provided to Owners' Associations and electronically through communication by e-mail with the support of the Owners' Associations Guidance and Control Bureau within Oradea City Hall;

- the conditions for granting heating assistance/energy supplement, as well as other information related to these benefits will be publicized also in the local press through press releases;

- applicants will fill out the Application and Statement accompanied by supporting documents regarding family composition, income earned, and proof of living space, and will submit them individually to the Public Relations and Initial Evaluation Service, to the Multifunctional Social Centers in city neighborhoods, or send them online;

- Applications and sworn statements are submitted until the 20th of each month to benefit from assistance starting with the current month (e.g. – by November 20), and after the 20th to benefit starting with the following month.

- The counselor, with permanent or temporary duties, checks the consistency between the data filled in the application and the supporting documents attached. For incomplete applications, the discrepancies will be communicated to the applicant in writing (and verbally – by phone) through an invitation.

- The counselor writes their clear name, date, and signature, registers the request in the special register/software (only complete applications will be registered), each application having a distinct number containing the following elements: applicant's name and surname, provider code, address, signature of the person who submitted the application;

- A registration number will be issued from the special (electronic) register for each submitted application/type of heating – a number under which the applications will also be archived;

- Complete and registered applications for granting home heating assistance/energy supplement with: thermal energy, electricity, solid or oil-based fuels as well as natural gas will be processed in the computer program, assigning them a unique number from the institution's CID program, constituting the database for the purpose of establishing whether to grant/deny benefits. If there are suspicions regarding the truthfulness of the statements made by the applicant, on-site verifications may be carried out (Field Verification Form); if the applicant/beneficiary is not found at home, a Finding Note is drawn up and an invitation is left in the mailbox to arrange the possibility of a home visit and to complete the Field Verification Form;

- Within 15 working days from the date of registration of the application for heating the home with electricity, on-site verification will be carried out (Field Verification Form), a necessary and essential part, after which the data from the applications are processed in the software, establishing the decision to grant/deny benefits;

- Monthly, the movable and immovable assets of the applicants/beneficiaries of the home heating/energy supplement will be verified by overlapping the database with the existing situation in the Economic Directorate of the Oradea City Hall records as well as with the records of the Civil Status Service regarding deceased persons; at the same time, monthly, based on the concluded collaboration protocols, information regarding the incomes of the applicants/beneficiaries will be requested from A.J.P.I.S., A.J.O.F.M., C.J.P., etc., as well as, by Internal Note, the situation of personal assistants and the allowances granted by DAS Oradea;

- The establishment of the granting/denial, modification/cessation of the right to home heating assistance/energy supplement is carried out by mayoral order, which will be communicated to the beneficiaries, A.J.P.I.S. and providers within 5 days from the date of issue; the calculation of maximum assistance in the case of home heating assistance with thermal energy is carried out taking into account the average consumption established for the temperate zone and the local price of the gigacalorie;

- Recipients of the home heating assistance are required to communicate any change in the family composition and income within 5 days of the change, by submitting the Self-Declaration form regarding the changes in the family composition and/or its income, accompanied by supporting documents;

- Modifications or, as the case may be, termination of the right to home heating assistance are made starting with the month following the one in which the change occurred;

- In the case of changes, new decisions will be issued regarding the modification of the assistance;

- At the beginning of the cold season, the method of payment of the home heating assistance with solid fuels is established by mayoral order;

- Monthly, after the establishment of the right to heating assistance, the Centralized Reports for all types of assistance/energy supplement containing: name, surname, provider code, amount, and percentage of the assistance are drawn up and communicated to: providers and to A.J.P.I.S.;

- Thermal, electricity and natural gas providers send, based on the centralized report, lists to the owner associations; Owners’ associations are required to send suppliers of thermal energy, electricity, or gas the breakdown of consumptions;

- Based on the Minutes, suppliers of thermal energy, electricity, or gas calculate the actual assistance and send the situation to DAS Oradea for certification by the mayor; The verified and certified reports become payment documents and are sent to Bihor A.J.P.I.S. for transferring the amounts into the ESCROW-type accounts of the suppliers; one copy is returned (electronically and/or in printed format) to the suppliers;

- Based on the monthly centralized situation including the beneficiaries of home heating assistance/energy supplement with solid fuels forwarded to Bihor A.J.P.I.S. and according to the Order regarding the method of payment of benefits, DAS Oradea requests the necessary amounts for payment of benefits through the Economic-Financial and Administrative Service; The situation of heating/energy supplement aids with solid fuels is communicated monthly, by Internal Note also to the Economic-Financial and Administrative Service, which will make the payments based on the Payment Statement; in the event that, at the end of the cold season there are still beneficiaries who have not collected their monetary rights, Payment Statements are drawn up, based on a written request from the beneficiary;

- The period during which the payment of home heating assistance with solid fuels will be made will be communicated through mass media and via sms;

- Monthly, Statistical Reports including the beneficiaries of home heating assistance / energy supplement (number) distinctly for each type of aid (electricity, thermal energy, natural gas, solid fuels) are prepared and forwarded to Bihor A.J.P.I.S.;

- If it is found that assistance has been unduly granted, it ceases the following month and the mayor's order is issued for the recovery of the amounts granted as home heating assistance/energy supplement; The mayor of Oradea's orders establishing receivables are forwarded to Bihor A.J.P.I.S. for the issuance of the Executive Director's Decisions regarding the recovery of unduly granted amounts;

- Solved applications accompanied by supporting documents will be archived in the order of the registration numbers from the special registers/software.

Beneficiaries

Heating assistance and energy supplement are granted to families and single persons with low incomes to cover in full or, as the case may be, part of the home heating expenses, for the cold season period November – March and to fully or partially cover the home lighting expenses, support for cooking facilities and providing hot water in the home, ensuring continuity of supply to electrical equipment on which people’s lives depend for health reasons and the use of communication means involving energy use for the period November - October.

Granting the right

Families and single persons with low income who use central heating energy for home heating benefit from assistance by percentage compensation of the actual value of the thermal energy bill. Vulnerable consumers who use natural gas, solid or oil-based fuels or electricity to heat their homes benefit monthly, depending on the net average monthly income per family member, from an amount established by law. The energy supplement is granted as a fixed amount, depending on the energy supply sources used. The necessary funds for the payment of the home heating assistance are provided from the state budget, through the budget of the Ministry of Labor and Social Solidarity.