LIHEAP funding is essential for many American families

Our reliable, dependable energy infrastructure ensures that when we need our homes warm in winter and cooled during hot summer days, we’ll be able to do so. However, there are many Americans struggling to make ends meet who occasionally need short-term help paying their energy bills.

For struggling families, the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) is a vital source of aid, helping them pay their energy bills without sacrificing a trip to the grocery store or the pharmacy.  Established in 1981, LIHEAP serves America’s most vulnerable citizens: more than 90% of households receiving LIHEAP include at least one person with a disability, a child under 18, a veteran, or a senior citizen.

In 2019, roughly 35 million households across the country were eligible for LIHEAP assistance (yearly incomes must be below about $32,000 for a family of three).  And yet, only 6.8 million households received this basic help to pay their energy bills.  Why?  Because unlike most other forms of federal assistance, LIHEAP must be funded annually by Congress.