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Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program
The Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) is a federally funded block grant program that is implemented at the State level through the Administration for Children and Families of the Department of Health and Human Services. The states in turn contract with local governments or nonprofit agencies such as community action agencies. LIHEAP has been operating since 1982 and its purpose is: “to assist low-income households, particularly those with the lowest incomes, that pay a high proportion of household income for home energy, primarily in meeting their immediate home energy needs.”
- The authorizing statute, codified at 42 U.S.C. sections 8621-8630, and the relevant regulations, codified at 45 C.F.R. part 94, for LIHEAP are available here (scroll to the bottom of this link for links to the statute and regulations).
- NEW! A June 2010 report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) on LIHEAP concluded
that greater fraud prevention controls are needed. Read the CAPLAW article summarizing the GAO's recent report and the steps OCS is taking to prevent fraud through policy change.
Related Resources:
- Read the GAO's June 2010 LIHEAP Report, Greater Fraud Prevention Controls are Needed.
- Read OCS IM - 2010 - 6, which strongly encourages states to exercise their discretion to require social security numbers in determining eligibility for LIHEAP.
- Read LIHEAP-AT-2010-6, which details what information states should include in these program integrity supplements. The action transmittal includes a template (Attachment 1) for states to provide details on their plans for preventing and detecting fraud, abuse, and improper payments
- Read the GAO's June 2010 LIHEAP Report, Greater Fraud Prevention Controls are Needed.
Recently Updated Information on July 21, 2010
