Activists like Zaebst note that they are working with the state Department of Public Welfare, which runs the program in Pennsylvania, to delay the new cuts as long as possible - since the farm bill allows up to five months to phase out the "heat and eat" benefit - and to ease the impact as much as possible. In Washington, at least 72 Democratic lawmakers from the northern states most affected by the new cuts have signed a letter seeking to delay implementation until after the end of the current brutal winter.