NEW YORK and PENNSYLVANIA — Worried about the cost of cooling to make it through the summer heat? Sullivan County’s HEAP (Home Energy Assistance Program) Office is accepting cooling benefit applications, but only until funds run out. Residents are urged to apply now. 

The cooling benefit can provide eligible applicants with an air conditioner in a room in their home. In circumstances where an air conditioner cannot be safely installed, a fan will be offered. Only one unit will be provided per household, and no additional HEAP cash benefits are available. See eligibility and more application information at sides.

The uncertainty over the county’s HEAP assistance comes from massive layoffs ordered by the Trump administration to the national HEAP office in early April. According to reporting from New York Focus, NYS applications for the heating assistance closed on April 7. Applications reopened on April 15 for cooling assistance but the future of the program remains uncertain. 

The Pennsylvania picture

The cutbacks in federal funding for heating assistance has Pennsylvania assistance administrators concerned as well. 

Heating assistance is provided in Pennsylvania through the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). In Wayne and Pike counties, that funding is administered by the Wayne County Redevelopment Authority, which uses the funding both for emergency heating grants and to fund a weatherization program, helping families repair their homes to cut down on high energy costs. 

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUD) sent a letter in April urging Pennsylvania’s federal representatives to fight for the remaining LIHEAP funds, which amount to $19 million for the year. 

“Last year, federal LIHEAP funding was vital in helping 346,000 Pennsylvania electric and natural gas customers keep their homes warm and safe…LIHEAP funds are, in many instances, the only source of funding available to help our senior citizens, children and individuals with disabilities and severe illnesses maintain or restore their heating services,” the PUD commissioners wrote. 

They wrote, “Accordingly, we urge Congress to take immediate action to ensure that the remaining LIHEAP funds for the 2024-2025 heating season are distributed to Pennsylvania and that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is able to effectively administer LIHEAP now and in the future. At a time when increased numbers of families are being forced to chose between spending on basic needs, including utilities, food, medication and shelter, we must all work together to preserve this valuable program for utility assistance.”

Last week, Sullivan County Health and Human Services Comissioner John Liddle said another program under HEAP, Clean and Tune (C&T) closed its applications on May 9. “That’s not something that we have seen in past years, but they are out of money in that program,” Liddle said. 

“I’ve spread the word in the community to make sure folks know that the cooling benefit is currently open. Yes, to provide folks with air conditioning. And if you need an air conditioner for some sort of medical reason, we are really strongly encouraging folks to come in and put that application in now, because we expect that that program will also run out of money, and probably in the middle of the summer. So you do not want to, you know, not want to be in that position mid-summer,” Liddle said.

You may be eligible for a Cooling Assistance HEAP benefit if:

• Your household’s gross monthly income is at or below the current income guidelines for your household size, or
• You receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, or
• You receive Temporary Assistance (TA), or
• You receive Code A Supplemental Security Income (SSI Living Alone), or
• You received a Regular benefit greater than $21 in the current program year or received a Regular benefit equal to $21 during the current program year and reside in government-subsidized housing with heat included in your rent, or
• Your household contains at least one individual with a documented medical condition that is exacerbated by extreme heat, and
• Your household contains a vulnerable member based on their age (60 years or older, or under age 6) which meet all other component eligibility criteria, or
• A member of your household is a United States Citizen or Qualified Non-Citizen, and
• You currently do not have a working air conditioner, or the air conditioner you have is five years old or older, and
• You did not receive a HEAP-funded air conditioner within the past five years.

Households that have received any kind of HEAP benefit in this past season are eligible to apply for cooling over the phone: 845/807-0142. If a household has not received a HEAP benefit in this past season, they must complete a full HEAP application—available at the Department of Social Services in Liberty or the Office for the Aging in Monticello. The HEAP office can also mail printed applications to people by request.

If you have any questions, call a HEAP staff member at 845/807-0142, prompt 2. Any requested documents can be faxed to 845/292-4651 or emailed to HEAP@sullivanny.gov.