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On September 18, the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), Education released the Fiscal Year (FY) 2020 Labor-HHS-Education bill. This bill includes funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). LIHEAP is a federal block grant program that provides money to low-income individuals/families to help them meet their heating and cooling needs and requires an annual appropriation from Congress. The funding level approved by the Senate Appropriations for FY 2020 is $3.69 billion, which is the same level as FY 2019.

Earlier this summer, the House approved a funding level of $3.84 billion representing a $150 million increase over FY 2019 funding, which means the House and Senate will need to agree on a final amount before it can be sent to the President for signature. Earlier this year, APGA signed on to a letter sent to congressional appropriations committees asking them to maintain or increase the amount of LIHEAP funding for FY 2020. APGA continues to push for full funding at the authorized $5.1 billion level as LIHEAP assistance continues to play a critical role in helping low-income families meet their energy needs. Without LIHEAP funding assistance, many low-income families face the difficult choice between paying their energy bills versus paying for other necessities, such as healthcare, food and childcare.

For questions on this article, please contact Todd Brady of APGA staff by phone at 202-464-2742 or by email at tbrady@apga.org.