Congressman Bennie Thompson Announces $33,029,800 for Mississippi to Help Households with Home Energy Costs

(Bolton, MS) Today, Congressman Bennie Thompson announced that Mississippi was awarded $33,029,800 in funding for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Administered through the Administration for Children and Families' Office of Community Services at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, this funding will help individuals and families with low incomes pay their home heating costs this winter, and with cooling bills in the summer. LIHEAP can also be used to weatherize homes to make them more energy efficient, and during disasters and extreme weather to mitigate energy emergencies.

Today's funding release approximately $3.7 billion of federal Fiscal Year 2025 (FY25) regular block grant funding to LIHEAP grant recipients. This funding is provided under the Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act, 2025, includes $100.108 million for FY25. One hundred million of these funds became available through the president's Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Appropriations Act (IIJA), (Public Law 117-58) and the remaining $108,197 became available from unobligated FY23 IIJA funds that were returned to HHS for redistribution.

"LIHEAP is crucial to protecting the safety and health of households across Mississippi," said Congressman Bennie Thompson. "The funding released today will help ensure that families and individuals have the support they need to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer. This assistance is a lifeline for so many in our community, helping to ease the financial burden of energy costs and improve overall quality of life."

Maintaining safe indoor air temperatures is critical, particularly for households that include older adults, individuals with disabilities, and young children. By helping to reduce the costs of home heating and cooling bills, reconnecting energy services that have been disconnected, preventing energy shutoffs, and providing minor energy-related home repairs, LIHEAP helps make sure that our neighbors can meet their home energy needs and stay safe in their homes.

Individuals interested in applying for LIHEAP can visit energyhelp.usor call the National Energy Assistance Referral (NEAR) hotline toll-free at: 1-866-674-6327.

Not sure whether you qualify? Households can easily identify if they may be eligible for assistance by using the LIHEAP Eligibility Tool on energyhelp.us.

In addition to releasing the funding, ACF's Office of Community Services (OCS) has updated their LIHEAP heating season toolkit to help grant recipients and stakeholders effectively reach households in need of assistance. The toolkits are available in Traditional and Simplified Chinese, Spanish, Dine, and Yup'ik. To access the toolkit's outreach materials including flyers, social media templates, and animated videos, visit the OCS Website.