Kansas Low Income Home Energy Bill Assistance

The federal government funded Low Income Energy Assistance Program in Kansas can provide assistance for paying utility and heating bills. Grants can be provided to low income families. The money can help households pay a portion of their home energy bills by providing qualified applicants a one-time per year benefit. Or funds can be used to pay for emergency repairs to heating equipment. A LIEAP crisis component also exists, and can be used in order to accelerate payments to Kansas residents.

A number of qualifications need to be met by applicants, with one of the key factors being the applicant’s income. Other key factors include the type of dwelling, type of heating fuel used, and also the applicant’s current utility rates. Some of the conditions include, but are not limited to, the following.

-Individuals who apply for utility bill assistance from the LIEAP program in Kansas need to demonstrate a recent history of payments for their bills and toward the purchase of their primary heating energy, whether it is natural gas, oil, or another form of energy.

-An adult living at the Kansas address needs to be responsible for paying the energy bills. Renters can also receive benefits from LIHEAP, so the resident can either pay the landlord or the fuel vendor directly. The household applying needs to have a fuel account or utility service which is in the name of the landlord or an adult household member. In other words, if the household’s heating or utility bill is in the name of someone else, energy assistance grants from LIEAP will be denied.

-Strict income levels are in place, and they are set on a scale that takes into effect the number of family members in the household. So the more people who live in the household, the higher the applicant’s income can be. These income levels can change from year to year.

 

 

 

 

-The application period for the Kansas Low Income Energy Assistance Program will normally open up in October and run throughout the spring, or until funding has been used up. Seniors can usually apply before others. All grants are paid out on a first come-serve basis.

-People who apply do not need to be a recipient of Food Assistance or any other state of Kansas public aid program in order to receive LIEAP benefits. Individuals may be eligible for cash grants and support from LIEAP even if you are not eligible for other state of Kansas benefits.

-Potential clients living in subsidized or public housing are eligible for the LIHEAP cash grant only if they pay part or all of their primary heating source directly to the utility company or fuel vendor.

If you want to learn more or to apply, call a local community action agency as indicated below.

Types of aid provided in Kansas include below.

The crisis grant, which can assist families in an emergency or crisis situation and who are in jeopardy of having their service disconnected and losing their heat during the winter. The Kansas LIEAP crisis grant is separate from the more regular financial assistance, and the crisis component may provide applicants with additional financial assistance needed. If someone meets qualifications, they may apply for a crisis grant more than once in each LIEAP application period, up to a maximum amount. Some of the other emergencies that can be addressed include people with no fuel, broken heating equipment or leaking lines which must be fixed, those in danger of being without fuel or of having utility service terminated, and people faced with termination.

The more regular assistance from Low Income Energy Assistance Program can assist with your regular heating bills, and you do not need an unpaid bill or to be faced with a crisis situation.

City of Wichita Career Development Division, 444 E. William, Wichita, KS 67202, dial the agency at (316) 337-9444. This agency serves all of Sedgwick County.

Community Action, Inc., 1000 SE Hancock Street, Topeka, KS 66607-1578, main telephone - (785) 235-9561. If you live in Clay, Dickinson, Geary, McPherson, Ottawa, Saline, Shawnee, or Wabaunsee, call this agency.

ECKAN, 1320 South Ash, P.O. Box 40, Ottawa, KS 66067-0040, call (785) 242-7450. Anderson, Coffey, Douglas, Franklin, Johnson, Lyon, Miami, Osage, Morris County.

Economic Opportunity Foundation, Inc., of Wyandotte County. 1542 Minnesota Avenue, Kansas City, KS 66102-4512, call (913) 371-7800

Harvest America Corporation, 155 South 18th Street, Suite 120, Kansas City, KS 66102-5644. Main phone number is (913) 342-2121. Accepts LIHEAP applications for Barton, Ellis, Finney, Ford, Grant, Seward, Sherman, Wichita, and South Wyandotte.

 

 

Mid-Kansas Community Action Program, Inc., 730 Cliff Drive, Augusta, KS 67010. Phone (316) 775-3000. Supports low income families in Butler, Chase, Cowley, Greenwood, Harper, Harvey, Kingman, Marion , Reno, Sumner County.

Northeast Kansas Community Action Program (NEK-CAP), Inc., Hiawatha, KS 66434-0380, call (785) 742-2222. Atchison, Brown, Doniphan, Jackson, Jefferson, Leavenworth, Marshall, Nemaha, Pottawatomie, and Riley County.

Southeast Kansas Community Action Program, Inc. (SEK-CAP, Inc.), 401 N. Sinnet, P.O. Box 128, Girard, KS 66743. Telephone (620) 724-8204. This agency covers all counties including Allen, Bourbon, Chautauqua, Cherokee, Crawford, Elk, Labette, Linn, Montgomery, Neosho, Wilson and Woodson.