Northwest Iowa — With winter weather headed our way, lower-income households may be worrying about having enough money to keep the heat on. Just a reminder, there’s a program that can help you with that.
We talked to Mid-Sioux Opportunity’s Housing Energy Services Director, Julie Colling, and she tells us about the home heating assistance program LIHEAP.
She tells us how to apply.
That number again is (800) 859-2025 or you can visit midsioux.org. Mid-Sioux is the community action agency serving Lyon and Sioux counties (and several others). The local community action agency serving Osceola and O’Brien Counties (and several others) is Upper Des Moines Opportunity. So if you live in one of their counties, call them instead toll-free for more information about LIHEAP at (800) 245-6151 or visit udmo.com. If you live in another area of Iowa and don’t know who to contact, you can get information from the Iowa Department of Human Rights at humanrights.iowa.gov.
Colling tells us that if you sign up for LIHEAP and are accepted, not only will they help you pay your heating bill, but they’ll enter your information into another part of the program — the weatherization program. Colling says every year, out of the 2500 or so LIHEAP recipients, they choose about 45 homes to weatherize, prioritized by need. They install weather-stripping, check and repair or replace insulation, furnaces, and water heaters if needed. According to Colling, they also meter refrigerators and freezers and they can even replace them if they’re not energy-efficient.
She says another benefit of being eligible for LIHEAP, is you are then protected on the utility shut-off moratorium.
She says you should check as soon as possible to see if you might be eligible for the program, as some years they do run out of funds. If you are on a budget plan with your utilities, it’s even more important to apply soon so that the utility has the LIHEAP funds when they figure out any changes to your monthly payment and you’re not stuck paying a higher amount for several months.
Income Maximums for LIHEAP 2018-2019
| Household Size | Three Month Gross Income | Annual Gross Income |
| 1 | $5,311 | $21,245 |
| 2 | $7,201 | $28,805 |
| 3 | $9,091 | $36,365 |
| 4 | $10,981 | $43,925 |
| 5 | $12,871 | $51,485 |
| 6 | $14,761 | $59,045 |
| 7 | $16,651 | $66,605 |
| 8 | $18,541 | $74,165 |
