Library: Policy
340:20-1-10. Program factors
Revised 9-15-22
(a) Home energy. For the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), home energy means a household's source of energy used to heat or cool a residential dwelling, per Section 8622(6) of Title 42 of the United States Code (42 U.S.C. § 8622(6)).
(b) Main energy source.
(1) The main energy source used to heat the home is approved during the winter heating application period. The main energy source may be electricity, natural gas, propane, kerosene, firewood, coal, butane, or heating oil. When the household uses a generator to heat the home, the generator may use natural gas, propane, or gasoline.
(2) The main energy source used to cool the home is approved during the summer cooling application period. In most instances, the main cooling source is electricity. When the household uses a generator to cool the home, the generator may use natural gas, propane, or gasoline.
(3) During an Energy Crisis Assistance Program (ECAP) application period, the household must choose the heating or cooling energy source that resolves the energy crisis.
(c) Household. Household means any person or group of persons who are living together as one economic unit and for whom residential energy is customarily purchased in common, or who make undesignated payments for energy in the form of rent, per 42 U.S.C. § 8622(5).
(1) The income and resources of all household members is considered, per Oklahoma Administrative Code (OAC) 340:20-1-11 procedures, even when one or more household members is not eligible to be included in the benefit, per (d) or (h)(5) of this Section.
(2) Refer to OAC 340:20-1-4 when one or more household members is a member of a tribe operating its own LIHEAP.
(3) A roomer is a person who rents a room in another person's house. A boarder is a person who lives in temporary housing, such as halfway house or group home, a commercial boarding house, or with another household who furnishes lodging and meals to the person in exchange for a reasonable monthly payment for board. When the household states there is a roomer or boarder living in the home, the person may be considered as a separate household only when:
(A) he or she is not related to the household; and
(B) there is a written lease or roommate agreement that contains a clause stating he or she is responsible for a specific portion of the utility bills.
(4) There is one authorization per household for each heating or cooling application assistance period.
(d) Citizenship and alien status. Per Section 71 of Title 56 and Section 20j of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes, all persons 14 years of age and older must declare if they are residing in the United States (U.S.) lawfully and may be required to sign Form 08MP005E, Citizenship Affidavit, per OAC 340:65-3-1(g). To be eligible for LIHEAP benefits, a person must be:
(1) a U.S. citizen;
(2) a U.S. non-citizen national;
(3) an alien who is both qualified and eligible, per OAC 340:50-67; or
(4) an alien not required to meet qualified alien status.
(e) Vulnerability. A household is vulnerable when it is totally or partially responsible for home energy costs. A household whose primary energy source is temporarily discontinued is also considered vulnerable. A roomer or boarder may be considered vulnerable when:
(1) he or she is not related to a household member with whom he or she lives; and
(2) there is a written lease or roommate agreement that contains a clause stating he or she is responsible for a specific portion of the utility bills.
(f) Non-vulnerability. Non-vulnerable households are those that do not bear any home energy expense. Examples of non-vulnerable living arrangements include:
(1) congregate or domiciliary facilities, such as a nursing facility, assisted living or long term care facility when utilities are paid through a corporate or business account, college or university dormitory, or fraternity or sorority housing;
(2) households whose primary energy source is totally paid by someone other than a household member; or
(3) subsidized households whose heating or cooling costs are included in the rent. Subsidized households assessed an energy surcharge during the operation of LIHEAP may be eligible for assistance when they provide verification of the surcharge. Acceptable surcharge verification may be established by an itemized statement from the landlord, a legally-binding lease agreement showing the surcharge, or a rent receipt designating the fuel cost is separate from the total shelter payment.
(g) Subsidized household. Subsidized households are households that receive a utility allowance to cover all or part of their energy cost or receive assistance in paying their rent or house payment on a regular basis. Subsidized households are not vulnerable when an agency or person pays the entire utility bill every month, even when the utility bill is in the name of a household member or the payment is a loan.
(1) Assistance may be from a government agency, such as a local housing authority, or a private person, usually a relative or friend, who helps the household pay their utility bills, rent or house payment, or allows the household to live rent free.
(2) When apartment rental rates in college or university-owned apartment complexes are set lower than other apartments in the community to help the student, the household is considered a subsidized household. • 1
(3) Eligible subsidized households with out-of-pocket utility expenses receive the same assistance benefit as unsubsidized households.
(h) Eligible household criteria. All eligible households must verify that they meet criteria in (1) through (5) of this subsection, per OAC 340:20-1-13, or the application is denied.
(1) Households must be totally or partially responsible for the cost of home energy and provide accurate utility information. • 2
(2) Households must not exceed the gross income and resource standards, per Oklahoma Human Services (OKDHS) Appendix C-7, Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program Income and Resource Level by Household Size.
(3) Households must include at least one U.S. citizen or eligible alien. An undocumented or ineligible alien may be present in the home, but is not included in household size when determining the household's financial eligibility or the benefit amount. The undocumented or ineligible alien's income is considered, per OAC 340:20-1-11(a)(4).
(4) The applicant must provide proof of his or her identity, per OAC 340:20-1-13(4).
(5) Each household member included in household size for income and benefit determination must provide his or her Social Security number (SSN), per OAC 340:20-1-13(3) and 340:65-3-1(f). When the household does not provide a SSN for a household member, the person's income is counted but he or she is not included in household size when determining the household's financial eligibility, per OKDHS Appendix C-7, or benefit amount, per OKDHS Appendix C-7-A, Estimated Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Benefit Level for all Households.
(i) Benefit amount. LIHEAP funding is contingent on the receipt of federal funds and authorized amounts vary from year-to-year. Benefit amounts are estimated and reserved for winter heating, summer cooling, and ECAP on a yearly basis after the funding amount for the federal fiscal year is known. OKDHS Appendix C-7-A provides estimated benefit amounts for each program component. Adjustments may be made to the estimated benefit amount during the federal fiscal year because of changes in available funding or anticipated need. • 3 The household benefit amount for:
(1) winter heating is based upon household size, net income, primary energy source, and if the household pays the energy supplier or the utility cost is included in the rent payment;
(2) summer cooling is based upon household size and net income; and
(3) ECAP is based on the amount needed to resolve the energy crisis up to the maximum amount shown, per OKDHS Appendix C-7-A.
Revised 9-15-22
1. Centralized Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) staff may need to contact the campus housing office(s) to determine if rental rates are set lower for college or university-owned apartments.
2. Subsidized households and roomers or boarders whose heating or cooling costs are included in their rent are not vulnerable unless assessed a surcharge per Oklahoma Administrative Code (OAC) 340:20-1-10 (e)(2) and (f)(3).
3. (a) When centralized LIHEAP staff discovers that an incorrect benefit amount was approved prior to benefit issuance, he or she must contact Adult and Family Services (AFS) LIHEAP Unit staff to provide the corrected information by:
(1) email to LIHEAP2@okdhs.org;
(2) phone; or
(3) memo.
(b) When centralized LIHEAP staff discovers the household received a higher benefit amount than it was eligible to receive after payment was made, he or she must write a memo explaining the reason for the overpayment and submit it to AFS LIHEAP Unit staff.
