 At Audiology Associates of Prestonsburg, you can live your life the way you want and find the freedom of better hearing. You'll experience patient care that is specific to you with exceptional follow-up care that ensures your hearing and balance needs are being met. Audiology Associates at 1428 Northlake Drive in Prestonsburg. Kentucky households that haven't yet applied for assistance paying their water bills can still do so. Additional federal aid through the American Rescue Plan Act provided the state $18 million to pay water companies directly to cover delinquent bills, past due charges, and fees and taxes for drinking and wastewater services. The program is slated to run through September of next year. Kentucky's Cabinet for Health and Family Services, Secretary Eric Freelander, says residents in every county will be able to get assistance. This is the first time that there's been a water and wastewater assistance program. Some local communities have had a few, but this is the first time we've been able to do this statewide. Kentuckians can apply for help paying water bills by contacting their local community action agency. Find your agency online at connect.ky.gov. According to the National Energy Assistance Directors Association, consumers owed more than $23 billion in utility debt in 2021, up from $20 billion the previous year. Freelander notes unpaid bills can have ripple effects that further destabilize struggling families. It's actually, in some ways, what's kept people out of housing is that they've owed past, like, water bills, and there hasn't been a lot of assistance for that. This helps with that. This helps people stay in housing, which is what we really need to do. Research shows low-income households spend around 16% of their budget on their water bills and minimum wage workers have to work around 10 hours per month just to pay for water services. This is Nadia Ramleghan for Kentucky News Connection. Support for this reporting was provided by the Carnegie Corporation of New York.