WARM
HANDS WARM HEART
The Low Income Home Energy Assistance
Program (LIHEAP), more commonly known as the Fuel Assistance
Program, provides low income households with help in paying
heating bills.
AM I ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE FUEL
ASSISTANCE ?
Eligibility is based on gross income, household size, and vulnerability to
heating costs. Fuel Assistance can assist with any primary heat type: oil,
natural gas, electricity, propane, kerosene, wood or coal.
Also, if you are living in nonsubsidized
housing and your heat is included in your rent, fuel assistance
can reimburse you for a portion of your rent.
If you are renting an apartment that
is subsidized and the cost of heat is included in your
rent, you may not be eligible for the fuel assistance program;
however, you may wish to apply to be enrolled in a Massachusetts
utility discount program strictly based on income. In Massachusetts,
the eligible income guidelines extend to households with
incomes up to 200% of the Federal Poverty Level.
Find
out if you meet the Federal Income Guidelines
HOW DO
I APPLY ?
Bring the following 3 types of information to a staffed SSCAC Intake Site :
Proof of income for the most
recent 30 days for all household members 18 years of
age and older.
Examples:
- Wages - provide 4 consecutive paystubs for the most
recent 30 days
- Fixed Income - copy of most recent check or printout
from the source
- Child support - copies of canceled checks or court
order, or stubs from the Department of Revenue
- Unemployment - two recent consecutive stubs showing
4 weeks of income
- Self employed - copy of prior year's entire tax package
including all schedules
Proof of identity - one of the
following documents:
- Driver's license
- Social Security card
- Paystub with Social Security Number
- State I.D. card
Proof
of street address - one of the following documents:
- Driver's license - if it matches the address on the
application
- Current bill - gas, telephone, electric or cable bill
as long as it shows your street address (not post office
box)
- Current lease
WHERE DO I APPLY ?
SSCAC, Inc. provides fuel assistance to residents
of 38 South Shore and Cape and Islands towns.
If you have never applied for Fuel
Assistance through South Shore Community Action Council,
Inc., or one of our many outreach sites, you must apply
in person.
Find
an outreach location to file your application
HOW DOES IT WORK?
Typically the program runs from November
1 until April 30 every year. Once your application is approved,
both you and your primary heating company (vendor) receive
a written notification from SSCAC indicating the amount
you have been approved for.
This amount is not guaranteed, but
is based upon funding availability. After your household
has been determined eligible, the vendor will send bills
to SSCAC for your usage up to your eligibility amount as
you receive deliveries or utility bills. Although payment
of these bills is dependent upon funding availability,
SSCAC will make every effort to pay your bills up to your
eligibility amount. Payments are made directly to the heating
vendor.
HOW DO I CHECK THE STATUS OF
MY APPLICATION?
You can call our automated interactive
voice retrieval telephone system at 508-746-6707 24 hours/day,
365 days/year. This system will explain how the program
works; what the eligibility guidelines are; and the status
of your application including any payments made.
WHAT ELSE DO I NEED TO KNOW?
Fuel assistance eligibility also entitles
clients to certain other free conservation services through
SSCAC LINK to Conservation Programs (Weatherization, AMPS,
HEARTWAP) as well as discounts on monthly utility bills
through participating utility companies.
Discounts are offered by Verizon, Nstar
Gas and Electric, Keyspan Gas,Massachusetts Electric and
Bay State Gas. SSCAC sends a list of all newly approved
clients to the above companies each month.
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