Low-Income Home Energy Assistance

The objective of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) is to make awards available to States, the District of Columbia, US Territories, and Native American Tribes and Tribal organizations for the purpose of assisting eligible households to meet immediate home energy needs. The target population is low-income households, especially those with the lowest incomes and the highest home energy costs or needs in relation to income and family size. There are four components of LIHEAP: (1) block grants, (2) energy emergency contingency funds, (3) leveraging incentive awards, and (4) the Residential Energy Assistance Challenge Program (REACH). Block grant funds are distributed by formula to grant recipients who design their own programs according to very broad federal guidelines. Contingency funds may be awarded to grant recipients in the event of a natural disaster or other emergency and typically must be utilized under the normal statutory and regulatory requirements that apply to block grants. Supplemental Leveraging Incentive funds allows for HHS to set aside a portion of appropriated funding to reward grant recipients that have acquired non-federal resources to provide services to LIHEAP-eligible households beyond what could be provided by Federal funds. The REACH program makes competitive grants available to grant recipients to help eligible households reduce their energy vulnerability through community-based organizations. Contingency funds, leveraging incentive awards, and REACH funding are only administered when funding for those components is available and allocated to them. This program is administered by the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Administration for Children and Families (ACF) Office of Community Services.

Types of Assistance: FORMULA GRANTS