KPÖ calls for doubled heating subsidy in Lower Austria

Austria’s Communist Party (KPÖ) branch in Lower Austria is calling for the state’s heating-cost subsidy to be doubled to 300 euros as energy prices rise, ORF reported.

Over the past year, electricity prices have risen by about 2% and gas prices by nearly 12%, according to the report. Pellet prices are up about 28%, while heating oil has risen by around 48%. The KPÖ has launched a campaign under the slogan “Heating must not make people poor”.

The subsidy has been 150 euros since 2021. The party says inflation would have brought that amount to 203 euros today. To qualify, a single-person household must earn no more than 1,308.39 euros, based on the compensatory allowance reference rate. That limit is well below the monthly poverty-risk threshold of 1,827 euros for one person.

The KPÖ wants the income limit raised to the poverty-risk threshold. It also says applications can only be submitted in person and that too few people know about the subsidy or how to apply. Although many municipalities offer their own support, the party says there is no overview of those schemes.

The party wants applications to be accepted online and information to be provided in several languages. It plans to submit its demands to the Lower Austrian state parliament as a petition. From October 24, it will hold door-to-door conversations and set up information stalls across the state, said KPÖ state spokesperson Max Zirngast.

The KPÖ says the subsidy could be funded with part of the profits of EVN, the state energy company. It said EVN had made 525 million euros in profit in the first nine months of its current financial year, nearly 21% more than in the whole of the previous financial year. The state of Lower Austria owns 51% of the company.

KPÖ federal spokesperson Tobias Schweiger said rising heating costs could add hundreds or thousands of euros to household expenses and criticised the federal government for not addressing the issue. He also called for taxes on large fortunes and inheritances, citing what he described as Austria’s second-highest wealth inequality in Europe.

The KPÖ, which is not represented in the Lower Austrian state parliament, also said it plans to contest the 2028 state election.