Enrollment For LIHEAP Heating Assistance Program Begins Oct. 1st

The enrollment period for Illinois’ program to help low-income households with heat and electricity bills, energy conservation and weatherization, begins Tuesday, October 1^st. In Champaign County, applicants can enroll in the Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) through the Champaign County Regional Planning Commission.

LIHEAP is a federally funded social services program, administered through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and in Illinois through the state Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity.

Dawn Rear, who manages the LIHEAP program in Champaign County, says LIHEAP benefits are for households with income that is no more than 150% of the Federal poverty guidelines. That can be up to $1,561 a month for a single person, $2,114 for two persons, $2,666 for a three-person household and $3,219 a month for a family of four.

But Rear says certain groups are given priority in the enrollment process.

“October 1 is for seniors, 60 and over, and/or households that contain a member who is disabled, receiving a permanent disability (benefit),” said Rear.

On November 1st, priority enrollment expands to include low-income households with young children under six and those whose utilities have been cut off, or are about to be.

 And on December First, LIHEAP signup opens for all other low-income households, up to 150% of the federal poverty guideline.

All eligible households may apply for LIHEAP benefits for the upcoming winter until May 31, 2020, or until benefits are exhausted. But Rear expects to have enough funding to help all those who apply in Champaign County --- which she says it typically around 6,000 households.

“If we do exhaust the funding, we’ve been fortunate enough that the state will sometimes give us additional funding to support those folks,” said Rear.

Applicants must provide documentation for LIHEAP applications to be processed. Rear says the following items will be needed:

--Proof of income for the 30-day period beginning with the date of application for all household members

            --Social Security numbers for all household members

            --Most recent gas and electric bill issued with the last 30 days (if applicants pay for their energy directly)

            --A disconnection notice, if utilities have been cut off

            --Proof of disability, if applicable.

Applications for LIHEAP assistance in Champaign County require an in-person visit. Those can be done Monday through Fridays from 8 A.M. to 4:30 P.M., at the Regional Planning Commission office at the Brookens Administrative Center, 1776 E. Washington Street, in Urbana.

In addition, LIHEAP applications are taken on Fridays only at the RPC’s outreach site in Rantoul, at the Community Service Center, 520 E. Wabash, from 9 A.M. to 3 P.M.

While applications for LIHEAP assistance will begin at various dates for various groups, Rear says there’s no need for people to stand in line for enrollment on the first day.

“We aren’t going to run out of funding, so they certainly don’t need to all come the first day because they’re fearful that they won’t be scheduled,” said Rear. “So folks should not worry --- we aren’t going to run out of funding anytime soon.”

Rear says applicants may make appointments to go through the enrollment process, which typically takes about a quarter-hour. She says those appointments may be made with a quick in-person visit to the Champaign County Regional Planning Commission office at the Brookens Center, or through an online appointment page that will go live on October 8^th at the CCRPC website.

For more information on the LIHEAP program in Champaign County, call 217-384-1226.