Winter is coming, and so are the heating oil bills. Government figures show the national average price of heating oil is now above $6 a gallon. A year ago it was about $3.50. Diesel, which is almost the same fuel, has set a record of more than $6.50 a gallon 1.
Reuters reported Saturday that the price has become a problem for Republicans in three Senate races where many families heat with oil: Maine, New Hampshire and Alaska. Democrats blame the higher costs on President Donald Trump's war with Iran, which has disrupted the world's diesel supply 1.
Fuel costs show up in many campaign speeches. In New Hampshire, they are shaping the whole race. About 43% of residents there use heating oil. Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas is running against Republican John Sununu for the open Senate seat 1.
Reuters said Sununu's campaign did not answer several requests for comment 1.
From Channel GOPPeltola: Tariffs doubled Alaska air taxi's parts billMary Peltola · 141 plays · captioned, with the source named
Why oil is so expensive
After the U.S. war with Iran began, Iran closed the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway that much of the world's oil passes through 2. Ukrainian attacks on Russian oil refineries, another big source of diesel, have cut supply even more 8.
The American Action Forum, a right-leaning policy group, says the average U.S. home heating oil price reached $6.19 a gallon in mid-October. That is 74% higher than the $3.56 of October 2025 4. In Maine, the average was $5.97 a gallon last week, about 80% higher than a year earlier 2.
Forecasts for the full winter differ. The federal Energy Information Administration (EIA), the government's energy statistics office, expects oil-heated homes to spend 21% more 4. The National Energy Assistance Directors Association, which represents the state officials who run heating aid programs, has estimated a 50% jump, or nearly $900 more for the average home 8.
Even some Republicans in Maine say voters will blame the president 1. About 54% of Maine homes use heating oil 1.
The administration's answer: a loan
Asked about the criticism, the White House pointed to the Energy Department's release of oil from the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve 1. On Oct. 21, the department said it would make up to 315,000 barrels available. That is about a third of the reserve 3.
This is not a giveaway. Companies bid to borrow the oil, and they must return the same amount plus a premium by the winter of 2027-2028. Deliveries from storage in South Portland, Maine; Boston; and New Haven, Connecticut, are to be done by Nov. 13 4. The reserve has been tapped in an emergency only once before, in 2012 after Hurricane Sandy 2.
Of course, this is a temporary measure to solve a temporary supply disruption.
Energy Secretary Chris Wright also used the announcement to urge governors in New York and New England to back the Constitution Pipeline, a proposed natural gas line 3.
That matters because the loan is small. The American Action Forum says it equals less than one day of U.S. winter heating oil use and would not much change prices at the pump or the tank 4. Analysts told Maine Public it may not cut prices soon, though it could help prevent bigger spikes this winter. Maine Gov. Janet Mills, a Democrat, said it may help in the short run but will not solve the long-term problem 2.
Maine's two senators, Republican Susan Collins and independent Angus King, asked for the release in a Sept. 22 letter. They both claimed credit when it came 3. Collins is in a close race against Democrat Troy Jackson 1.
Maine is one of the most dependent states in the country on home heating oil and the cost is absolutely through the roof.
The fight over heating aid
Many families who can't afford fuel rely on the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP. This federal block grant helps pay heating and cooling bills, and about 6 million households used it last year 6.
In its budget plan for fiscal year 2027, which began Oct. 1, the Trump administration proposed ending LIHEAP's funding entirely. A bipartisan group of senators led opposition on the Senate Appropriations Committee, the panel that writes spending bills, and funding stayed above $4 billion 6. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has since released $3.6 billion, or 90% of this year's money under the current temporary spending law 7.
Supporters say that is not enough. On Oct. 15, Pappas and 72 other House members, from both parties, asked appropriators for an extra $3 billion in emergency aid. Their letter says five of every six families who qualify get no help 5. Pappas's office also pointed to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s decision last year to fire all of LIHEAP's staff 5.
Alaska, too
About 30% of Alaskans heat with oil. Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan, who faces Democrat Mary Peltola, supports a temporary pause on U.S. diesel exports, a step Trump has considered. Reuters reported that Sullivan supports the Iran war but says it should end soon 1.
The pattern is clear. The administration started a war that drove up fuel prices and proposed eliminating the main program that helps families pay for heat. Now, a week before voters decide control of the Senate, it is offering a short-term loan from a small reserve. An October Reuters/Ipsos poll found nearly 80% of Americans blame Trump's policies for higher costs, including energy 1.
The Record
- Thirty-one senators led by Collins, Reed and Murkowski urge HHS to release LIHEAP funds quickly. The administration had proposed zeroing out the program for fiscal 2027 6.
- Sens. Collins and King ask the administration to release oil from the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve 3.
- Rep. Pappas and 72 House colleagues ask for $3 billion in extra emergency LIHEAP funding 5.
- The Energy Department says it will lend up to 315,000 barrels, about a third of the reserve 3.
- Reuters reports that heating oil above $6 a gallon is hurting Republicans in the Maine, New Hampshire and Alaska Senate races 1.
Sources
- Reuters (via Investing.com), “As winter nears, heating oil emerges as hurdle for Republicans in US Senate races” (2026-10-24). investing.com/news/economic-indicators/as-winter-nears-heati
- Maine Public / NHPR, “Feds to release 315,000 barrels from heating oil reserve” (2026-10-21). nhpr.org/2026-10-21/feds-to-release-315-000-barrels-from-hea
- Office of Sen. Susan Collins, “Administration Responds to Senators Collins and King by Releasing Home Heating Oil from Northeast Reserve” (2026-10-21). collins.senate.gov/newsroom/administration-responds-to-senat
- American Action Forum, “Heating Oil Price Surge: DOE Announces Emergency Reserve Release” (2026-10-23). americanactionforum.org/insight/heating-oil-price-surge-doe-
- Office of Rep. Chris Pappas, “Pappas Leads Bipartisan Call to Increase Home Heating Assistance Funding” (2026-10-15). pappas.house.gov/media/press-releases/pappas-leads-bipartisa
- Office of Sen. Susan Collins, “As Home-Heating Season Approaches, Senators Collins, Reed, Murkowski Lead Bipartisan Call for Trump Administration to Swiftly Release LIHEAP Funding” (2026-09-17). collins.senate.gov/newsroom/as-home-heating-season-approache
- American Public Power Association, “HHS Releases $3.6 billion in FY 2027 LIHEAP Funding” (2026-10-13). publicpower.org/periodical/article/hhs-releases-36-billion-f
- Yahoo Finance, “'A lot of sticker shock': Home heating costs soar for millions amid oil crisis” (2026-10-04). finance.yahoo.com/economy/article/a-lot-of-sticker-shock-hom
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