Automatic Home Heating Rebate Extended to 28,000 More Homeowners

More than 28,000 additional homeowners will automatically receive a rebate on their oil bill after changes to the Your Energy Rebate program.

Properties classified as resource taxable (such as marshland), resource forest (such as wood lots), and resource exempt no longer have to apply for the rebate. They are now eligible for a point-of-sale rebate of eight per cent, the provincial portion of the harmonized sales tax (HST).

"We are changing the Your Energy Rebate program so more households can receive the point-of-sale rebate on home heating," said Jamie Muir, Minister of Service Nova Scotia and Municipal Relations. "These changes are in keeping with the intent of the program."

Since December 2006, the program has helped Nova Scotians with the rising costs of home heating. Even more Nova Scotians will receive home heating assistance this winter, as well as help to save energy and money for years to come, through government's $92-million Heat Smart program.

For more information on Your Energy Rebate, call 424-5200 in Halifax, toll-free at 1-800-670-4357 or visit the website at www.yourenergyrebate.ns.ca .