Contingency Planning

States to Receive $50 Million In Emergency Energy Assistance

September 18, 2007

Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt has announced that 12 states will be given $50 million in emergency energy assistance. The funds from the federal government's Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) are targeted to states that have experienced much hotter than normal conditions in recent weeks.

LIHEAP funding is administered to states through HHS' Administration for Children and Families' Office of Community Services to help eligible low-income homeowners and renters meet their heating or cooling needs.

"Severe heat can be devastating, especially for our children, older Americans and people with disabilities," Leavitt says. "This emergency aid will help states that have recently experienced unusually high temperatures and need additional resources to support low-income families through the rest of the summer."

The $50 million is allocated to states most affected by the heat, based on the number of low-income households in the state.

Including the funds released today, a total of approximately $2 billion in LIHEAP funds, has been made available to states and tribes in fiscal year 2007.

"The money released by the Bush Administration will help those most in need - including children, the elderly and the disabled," says Acting Assistant Secretary for the Administration for Children and Families Daniel Schneider. "Providing aid to these vulnerable citizens creates an environment where health and safety risks can be reduced."

States receiving emergency energy assistance funding are: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Tennessee.

- HHS