Funds are available to help Kentuckians pay rising electric bills. (Getty Images)
Community action agencies across Kentucky are now accepting applications to help residents pay their electric bills.
The summer subsidies are available through?the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and Low-Income Home Water Assistance Program (LIHWAP).
LIHEAP can provide a household with a one-time payment between $50 and $250, depending on income and household type, to help with electric bills. LIHWAP can likewise provide a one-time payment between $50 and $150 to help with water or wastewater bills.
To qualify, a person’s income must be below 150% of the federal poverty line, which is $45,000 for a household of four. LIHEAP also offers emergency assistance for those facing utility disconnections, along with funding to help make low-income homes more energy-efficient.
“Any household that has a verified expense and meets the income limits, it’s a credit or a payment on their monthly bill,” said Todd Trapp, Director for the Kentucky Division of Family Support at a legislative committee hearing in July.
Some agencies also provide air conditioners if a household has an individual whose medical condition could lead to worsening health without cooling.
LIHEAP and LIHWAP are both entirely federally funded, and enrollment is open for the program until Sept. 22 or until funds run out.
Find county offices for local community action agencies across the state here.
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our website. AP and Getty images may not be republished. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of any other photos and graphics.
Liam Niemeyer
Liam covers government and policy in Kentucky and its impacts throughout the Commonwealth for the Kentucky Lantern. He most recently spent four years reporting award-winning stories for WKMS Public Radio in Murray.
Kentucky Lantern is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
