Library: Policy
340:20-1-12. Applications
Revised 11-30-21
Households apply for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) by submitting an online application at www.okdhslive.org, calling an Oklahoma Human Services (OKDHS) county office to assist with submitting the online application, or calling the phone number on the www.okdhslive.org website to request Form 08LH002E, Application for Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Application, be mailed to them. When Form 08LH002E is mailed to the household with a postage paid envelope, the application must be completed and returned by email, faxed to the number on the form, or mailed to the return address. • 1
(1) Households may be pre-authorized for the LIHEAP winter heating or summer cooling component without filing an application, but are not pre-authorized for both in the same federal fiscal year, October through September. Households pre-authorized for LIHEAP are households that received Child Care Subsidy, State Supplemental Payment (SSP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits all 12 months of the previous federal fiscal year and met criteria in (A) through (D) of this paragraph.
The household:
(A) received LIHEAP winter heating or summer cooling the previous federal fiscal year;
(B) address remains the same;
(C) income did not change or exceed eligibility guidelines for household size during the previous federal fiscal year; and
(D) members remain the same from the previous federal fiscal year.
(2) A computer-generated notice is normally mailed the month before the winter heating or summer cooling application period starts. The notice is sent to households not selected for preauthorization that receive SNAP benefits, TANF, and or SSP. The notice informs the household how to apply for LIHEAP.
(3) When an application is denied, households may request a fair hearing when they do not agree with the decision or submit a new application to reapply.
(4) When a household moves after applying for LIHEAP, a new application is not necessary. However, the household must report the change of "service" address to an OKDHS county office within 10-calendar days of moving.
(5) When submitting an application, the household must provide the correct account name, account number, and energy supplier to ensure payments are made to the correct energy supplier. All households applying for the Energy Crisis Assistance Program must have a verified energy crisis, per Oklahoma Administrative Code 340:20-1-17(f)(2). • 1
Revised 11-30-21
1. (a) Applications and verification received in an Oklahoma Human Services (OKDHS) county office must be scanned, imaged, or scanned and imaged to the Oklahoma Human Services Family Support Imaging 90L Inbox with the correct case number. Once the application is processed, centralized Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) staff sends the documentation to files.
(b) When the OKDHS county worker proxies an application for the household, he or she inquires about all possible household members, double checks to ensure information provided about the energy supplier and account information is correctly entered on the application, uploads any verification provided to the 90L workflow, and enters any additional information provided by the household in Family Assistance/Client Services (FACS) case notes. Centralized LIHEAP staff is responsible for sending Form 08AD092E, Client Contact and Information Request, when verification is needed.
(c) When a client calls the OKDHS county office after submitting an online application to find out the application's status, or if any other information is needed, county staff checks DiscImage to be sure a valid application was submitted, checks FACS case notes to see if centralized LIHEAP staff requested verification, and informs the client about the application status. When the client provides additional information, county staff images any documents provided to the case record, updates FACS case notes, and emails liheap2@okdhs.org to inform centralized LIHEAP staff that new information was provided.
