Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
Division of Energy Assistance/OCS/ACF

LIHEAP Allotments under the FY 2000 Energy Emergency Contingency Fund - FOURTH DISTRIBUTION

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THIS CONTAINS INFORMATION ISSUED BY THE U.S. ADMINISTRATION FOR CHILDREN AND
FAMILIES IN LIHEAP INFORMATION MEMORANDUM TRANSMITTAL NO. LIHEAP-IM-2000-9, 
DATED 2/18/2000


TO:            LOW INCOME HOME ENERGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (LIHEAP)
               GRANTEES AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES

SUBJECT:       LIHEAP Allotments under the FY 2000 Energy Emergency
               Contingency Fund - FOURTH DISTRIBUTION

RELATED
REFERENCES:    Low Income Home Energy Assistance Act, Title XXVI
               of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1981,
               Public Law 97-35, as amended; and Public Law 106-
               113, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2000.

PURPOSE:       To provide grantees with information on a
               fourth distribution of LIHEAP energy emergency
               contingency funds in FY 2000 in the amount of $120
               million, which were made available to 31 States
               and 38 tribal LIHEAP grantees to help them meet
               needs arising from significant increases in the
               price of home heating oil and propane.

BACKGROUND:    The Human Services Amendments of 1994 (Public Law
               103-252) amended Section 2602(e) of the LIHEAP
               statute to provide for a permanent authorization
               of an emergency contingency fund.  Under this
               provision, up to $600,000,000 may be made
               available each fiscal year, in addition to other
               funds that may be appropriated, "to meet the
               additional home energy assistance needs of one or
               more States [grantees] arising from a natural
               disaster or other emergency."  Funds appropriated
               under this section are considered to be emergency
               requirements under the terms of Section
               251(b)(2)(D) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency
               Deficit Control Act of 1985, and are to be made
               available only after the President submits a
               formal budget request to the Congress for all or a
               part of the funds appropriated under this section,
               providing the request designates the amount
               requested as such an emergency requirement.  The
               Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2000 (Public Law
               106-113) included an appropriation of $300,000,000
               for FY 2000 for the LIHEAP contingency funds.

               Section 2604(g) of the LIHEAP statute as amended
               in 1994 by Public Law 103-252 provides that the
               Secretary of HHS may allot any funds made
               available under Section 2602(e) to one or more
               States [grantees], taking into account the extent
               to which the grantees were affected by the
               emergency or disaster, the availability of other
               resources to the grantees under LIHEAP or any
               other program, and such other factors that are
               deemed relevant.

               On October 18, 1999, the President made
               $5,000,000 in FY 2000 LIHEAP emergency contingency
               funds available to the State of New Jersey to help
               provide relief for energy related damage resulting
               from severe flooding caused by Hurricane Floyd and
               subsequent heavy rains.  On January 25, 2000, the
               President released $45 million in contingency
               funds to 11 States and 17 tribal grantees in those
               States to help them meet needs arising from
               significant increases in the prices of home
               heating oil and propane.  On February 10, the
               President released $130 million in contingency
               funds to all LIHEAP grantees to help them meet
               continuing significant increases in the prices of
               home heating oil and propane.  (See LIHEAP
               Information Memorandum 2000-1 dated October 5,
               1999, LIHEAP-IM-2000-7 dated February 9, 2000, and
               LIHEAP-IM-2000-8 dated February 15, 2000,
               respectively, for more information on these
               releases.)

CONTENT:       Since the President released $45 million in
               contingency funds on January 25 and $130 million
               on February 10, the prices of home heating oil and
               propane have continued to rise.  For this reason,
               on February 16, 2000, the President notified
               Congress of his intent to make the remaining $120
               million in FY 2000 LIHEAP energy emergency
               contingency funds available to all LIHEAP
               grantees, to enable them to take steps to mitigate
               the effects of the increases on low income
               households.  This release of funds exhausts the
               LIHEAP contingency funds that have been
               appropriated to date.  The President has
               announced, however, that he will request the
               appropriation of another $600 million in LIHEAP
               contingency funds for FY 2000.

               The Secretary of Health and Human
               Services released the $120 million to thirty-one
               States (and 38 tribal grantees in those States)
               that faced disproportionately high increases in
               the prices of oil and propane.  These thirty-one
               States were determined by reviewing heating oil
               and LPG price data for each State from the U.S.
               Department of Energy for the last two reporting
               periods in January 2000 and the first reporting
               period in February 2000, compared to the same
               period for 1999, and determining the percentage
               price increase for each State.  (This is the same
               time period used for the February 10 release.)
               The percentage increase for each of those two
               fuels was then multiplied by the percentage of low
               income households in the State under 125% of the
               poverty level using that fuel for heat, to
               determine a price impact factor.  The price impact
               factors for oil and LPG were added together to
               determine a total price impact.

               Those States where the total price
               impact factor exceeded 5% received a portion of
               the $120 million.  (The January 25 and the
               February 10 releases used a threshold of 10%.)
               Thirty-one States met the criteria outlined above.
               For those 31 States, the funds were allocated
               based on the amount by which their price impact
               factor exceeded 5%, weighted by the total number
               of low income households below 125% of the poverty
               level in the State.

               In the thirty-one States that received a
               portion of the $120 million, there are 38 Indian
               tribes or tribal organizations that receive direct
               LIHEAP funding from the Department of Health and
               Human Services.  These tribal grantees also
               received a share of the $120 million in
               contingency funds.  Their contingency fund awards
               were based on the same share of the State's
               contingency allotment as the tribal grantee
               received of the State's regular LIHEAP block grant
               allotment.  Allocations for the States and
               tribes/tribal organizations are shown in the
               attachments.

               In releasing the funds, the President
               encouraged the States to increase their income
               eligibility standards so that they can help more
               households cope with the higher prices.  Federal
               law allows States to provide LIHEAP benefits to
               households with incomes up to the higher of 150%
               of the poverty level or 60% of State median
               income.  In all but a few States, 60% of State
               median income is higher.  Most States set a lower
               income limit, in order to focus available funds on
               the most needy.  With the extra contingency funds,
               States should be able to serve additional
               households at higher income levels.  We have
               attached a chart showing the maximum federal
               income limits for each State, as well as a chart
               showing what limits States are currently using for
               heating assistance in FY 2000.

               In order to expedite the use of the
               funds in emergency conditions, no special
               restrictions were imposed on their use.  The
               contingency funds may be used for any purpose
               authorized under LIHEAP, including heating
               assistance, crisis assistance, weatherization,
               administrative costs, and carryover, subject to
               normal LIHEAP restrictions.  The contingency funds
               should be added to the regular block grant
               allocation to determine limits on weatherization,
               administration and planning costs, Assurance 16
               activities, and carryover to FY 2001.

ATTACHMENTS:
               (1)  State and tribal allocations for the [fourth] distribution of
                    FY 2000 LIHEAP energy emergency contingency funds in the amount
                    of $120 million/Excel 97 (64k)

               (2)  Heating oil and LPG price data for the last two reporting
                    periods for January 2000 and the first reporting period for
                    February 2000, compared to the same period for 1999/Excel 97 (63k)

               (3)  Method for Determining Distribution of 2/16/2000 LIHEAP
                    Contingency Funds/Word 97 (38k)

               (4)  Copy of the White House press release on the 2/16/2000
                    release of LIHEAP contingency funds

               (5)  Charts showing maximum income eligibility limits by State, and FY 2000
                    income limits currently being used by the States/Excel 97 (35k)


INQUIRIES TO:  Janet M. Fox, Director
               Division of Energy Assistance
               Office of Community Services, ACF, HHS
               370 L'Enfant Promenade, S.W.
               Washington, D.C.  20447
               Telephone:  (202) 401-9351
               Fax:  (202) 401-5718
               E-mail:  jmfox@acf.dhhs.gov




                                             /s
                                   Janet M. Fox
                                   Director
                                   Division of Energy Assistance
                                   Office of Community Services

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URL: http://www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/liheap

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For Immediate Release February 16, 2000

STATEMENT BY THE PRESS SECRETARY

President Clinton today, directed HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala to
release an additional $120 million in Low Income Home Energy Assistance
(LIHEAP) emergency funds for states, territories and tribes due to
continuing increases in home heating fuel prices, for a total of $295
million released this winter to help affected low income families. This
action releases the remainder of funds currently available under the
LIHEAP program.

Today, the President also announced that he is sending Congress an
emergency supplemental request for $600 million to provide additional
funds for LIHEAP through the end of this fiscal year. These two sources
of funds should enable the seriously affected states to provide
assistance to all eligible households to help cope with higher fuel costs.

President Clinton also called upon states to provide assistance to
as many families as possible who are eligible under Federal law.
Currently, many states choose to use a cut-off for eligibility of
approximately $25,000 in annual income for a family of four. The
President is calling on states to use the highest income standard
available under federal law. This is based on state median income and
can extend as high as approximately $40,000 in annual income for a
family of four. In addition, HHS will take steps at the Federal level
to make it easier for states to use available funds to serve additional
families.

The $120 million in funds released today are in addition to
the $130 million HHS released to all states, territories, and tribes on
February 10th and the $45 million released to eleven states on January
25th to address increased heating costs. Since February 10th, fuel
prices have continued to climb -- by more than 80 percent compared to
last year in some states-- causing significant hardship for low-income
families throughout the country.

The President's $600 million supplemental emergency request will be
used to address heating costs associated with oil price increases and
will be available as a reserve for emergency funding in the event of a
severe summer heat wave. There have been deadly heat waves in each of
the last two summers. LIHEAP helps eligible families pay the costs of
heating and insulating their homes in the winter, and cooling their
homes in the summer. Approximately four million low-income households
receive assistance each year.

In addition to the LIHEAP action, the President also directed
Secretary of Energy Bill Richardson to conduct a 60-day study of
opportunities for diversifying energy supplies in the Northeast,
including investigating the potential benefits of encouraging factories
and other fuel users to switch to other fuels.

###

LIHEAP State Allocations

February 16, 2000

The state allocations follow. These allocations reflect the fact
that some states have been more significantly affected by increased fuel
prices than others in recent weeks. These totals include funds that
will be provided directly to tribes in these states.

Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
FY 2000 State Contingency Allotments

 * $295 million of LIHEAP funding has been released in response to
increased oil prices this winter. $5 million of LIHEAP funding was
released earlier to respond to home energy costs related to Hurricane Floyd