The first batch of $450 heating relief checks will be sent to Mainers  early next week, a state agency spokesperson confirmed Friday.

The checks will go to single tax filers making $100,000 or less or $200,000 for couples filing jointly. 

An estimated 880,000 Mainers will receive the checks, which will mean $900 for most families.

When lawmakers passed a bill approving the checks earlier this month, the state set the target date for the first checks to be sent out by the end of January.

The state will meet that goal, Sharon Huntley, spokesperson for the Department of Administrative and Financial Services, said Friday.

Most qualifying Mainers will get their checks by the end of March, she said.

The checks are part of a $474 million package that includes $40 million in supplemental funding for the low-income heating assistance program, $10 million for emergency fuel assistance and $21 million to support emergency housing and shelters.

The average statewide cost of a gallon of heating oil is $4.44, kerosene is $5.82 and propane is $3.29, according to the Governor’s Energy Office.

Heating oil, which is used by 60% of Mainers as their primary source of heat, was $5.08 per gallon in early December when lawmakers first voted on the package.

That effort failed when Senate Republicans blocked passage and called for a public hearing. After a late December hearing, the Legislature passed the measure in early January.

Although it’s been a relatively mild winter so far, frigid cold is expected to blanket Maine next week with nighttime lows predicted at 5 degrees Tuesday and Wednesday. On Thursday, daytime highs are predicted to be only 18 degrees, according to the National Weather Service.

The state set up a portal for Mainers to check the status of their checks.