Heating Aid to the Poor Cut

Thousands of the poor across the Northeast are going to have a tough winter after the federal government cut home heating aid to states like New Hampshire and Massachusetts. Congress is considering making further cuts of more than $1 billion from last year's $4.7-billion Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program. It had served nearly nine million households. "They're playing Russian roulette with people's lives," said John Drew, a Boston community developer.