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Utility Bills in Vermont — No Veteran Rate, and the State’s Own Answer Is 211 and a $500 Fund

The Vermont Office of Veterans Affairs was asked this question on its own website and answered it. Its route for a veteran who cannot pay for heat or power is Vermont 211 first, the Economic Services Division’s heating assistance second, and its own Veteran Assistance Fund third — a one-time payment of up to $500. No veteran discount on a utility bill appears anywhere in its answer.

Verified August 23, 2026

What this benefit is

The Vermont Office of Veterans Affairs was asked this question on its own website and answered it. Its route for a veteran who cannot pay for heat or power is Vermont 211 first, the Economic Services Division’s heating assistance second, and its own Veteran Assistance Fund third — a one-time payment of up to $500. No veteran discount on a utility bill appears anywhere in its answer.

What it's worth: No veteran utility rate exists in Vermont — the routes named by the state are assistance, not discount

  • This record exists to close a question rather than to pay anything. Nothing in it is a veteran discount.
  • The Office of Veterans Affairs states: "Veterans and their families who are having a hard time with basic life necessities such as food, shelter, utilities, etc., should contact Vermont 211. This program has an inventory of all the federal, state, and local resources available to Vermonters."
  • The Office then directs veterans to the Agency of Human Services’ Economic Services Division, whose staff "administer programs that can provide emergency funds, food, and heating assistance", giving a general information line of (800) 287-0589 and a Home Heating Fuel Assistance line of (800) 479-6151.
  • Asked whether there is a financial assistance programme specifically for veterans, the Office answers: "Yes. The Vermont Office of Veterans Affairs administers the Vermont Veteran Assistance Fund. This program can provide a one-time payment to low-income Vermont veterans or their families who are in a financial crisis and need help paying for a critical need, such as housing and utilities. The amount of assistance provided can be up to $500. Applications are done over the phone and takes about 10 minutes to complete. Vermont residency is required."
  • The Office also names the Vermont National Guard family support section, and private organisations including Friends of Veterans, Supportive Services for Veteran Families, Ruck-Up Inc., the American Legion, the VFW, Vietnam Veterans of America, the Disabled American Veterans and the Military Order of the Purple Heart.
  • Nothing on the page describes a reduced tariff, a lifeline rate or a percentage discount available to a veteran as a veteran.

Who is entitled to it

  • Your home is in Vermont.

Not sure whether that describes you?

Answer a few questions about this benefit specifically — we only ask what this one actually depends on, and we stop as soon as we know.

From what you have told us so far, you appear to qualify.

How to claim it

  1. 1Do not spend time hunting for a veteran rate on a Vermont utility bill. The state agency whose job it is to know says the route is assistance, not a discount.
  2. 2Dial 2-1-1 first, as the Office itself advises. It is the inventory of federal, state and local resources and it runs 24 hours a day.
  3. 3Ask the Economic Services Division about Home Heating Fuel Assistance on (800) 479-6151. That is the state programme that actually pays for heat, and it is income-tested rather than service-tested.
  4. 4Then ask the Office of Veterans Affairs about the Vermont Veteran Assistance Fund on (888) 666-9844 in state or (802) 828-3379. Housing and utilities are named among the critical needs it can meet.
  5. 5Know the shape of that fund before you call: one-time, up to $500, low-income, Vermont residency required, and a phone application that takes about ten minutes.
  6. 6If a deployment is the reason for the hardship, ask the Vermont National Guard family support section on (888) 607-8773 — the Office notes its funds are not limited to Guard families.
Form
None — this record answers a question rather than opening a claim
File with
Vermont 211; the Economic Services Division; the Vermont Office of Veterans Affairs
No renewal
Once granted it does not need renewing.
CorrectionWhat exists for veterans in Vermont is assistance that pays part of a bill, not a rate that lowers it. The distinction matters because a veteran expecting a standing discount will never apply for the thing that would actually help.
Worth knowingThe Office puts 211 ahead of its own fund, and it is right to: the fund is capped at $500 and paid once, while the heating assistance programme is designed to carry a household through a season.
Known gapWhether any individual Vermont electric or gas utility offers a veteran rate in its tariff was not checked this session. Nothing in the state agency’s answer suggests one exists.

Sources

Why only one source type: The absence is established by the state veterans agency answering the question on its own page; legislature.vermont.gov refused every request this session, so no statutory search was possible to corroborate it.

This finder provides an informational match, not a government eligibility determination. The responsible agency decides your application.