LIHEAP update

If you’ve never qualified for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), you might this winter.

The state recently extended the program so that households with annual incomes up to about 210 percent of poverty level — for instance, a family of four earning up to $44,443 — can qualify for help.

The assistance also is more generous, with minimum cash grants of $300 to help cover heating bills and maximum crisis grants of $800 to help prevent shutoffs and pay for other emergencies, like broken heaters.

To learn how to apply, call 866-857-7095 statewide.

To see the income guidelines for different household sizes, visit www.dpw.state.pa.us, click on the LIHEAP box, then click on “Home Heating Assistance (LIHEAP) Eligibility” in the left-hand column.