Arkansas energy and utility bill assistance: LIHEAP and weatherization (2026)

Why Arkansas LIHEAP is closed in October and when it reopens

The FFY 2026 Model Plan sets two application windows ⁠³:

• Winter (heating): opens the first Monday after the New Year holiday. Regular benefits end the last business day of March. Crisis benefits continue to the last business day of April.
• Summer (cooling): opens the first Monday after the July 4 holiday. Regular benefits end the last business day of August. Crisis benefits continue to the last business day of September.

CBOs may open up to 30 days early for priority households: anyone 60 or older, people with disabilities, and households with a child under 6 ⁠³. Last winter that early intake began December 8, 2025 ⁠¹¹. AEO’s site now shows the program as closed ⁠¹.

The proposed FFY 2027 plan keeps the same dates ⁠¹⁰, so general intake should open Monday, January 4, 2027, with priority intake from early December 2026. Confirm exact dates with your CBO. AEO declined a public comment asking it to open on November 1 ⁠¹¹. Once open, applications are first-come, first-served, with disconnected and life-threatening cases first ⁠³. When funds run out, benefits stop ⁠⁹.

Counting income against the 60% SMI chart

Income is measured by the month: 60% of state median income for one to seven people, 150% of the poverty guidelines for eight or more ⁠³. The four-person limit of $4,514 a month equals $54,168 a year ⁠². Two rules help:

• Work income is discounted. AEO subtracts 20% from gross earnings; Social Security, SSI, child support, unemployment and pensions count in full ⁠³. A family of four earning $5,000 a month in gross wages counts $4,000, under the limit.
• Lump sums mostly don’t count. Lottery winnings are the only one-time payment counted ⁠³.

Bring proof of four weeks of income for everyone 18 or older, or a Zero Income form ⁠⁹. The proposed FFY 2027 plan says Arkansas does not use categorical eligibility ⁠¹⁰, so SNAP or SSI receipt alone does not qualify you.

Renters with utilities in their rent need a lease or landlord statement. In subsidized housing with no utility bill, you must show an energy surcharge beyond your rent. Households receiving a utility allowance or reimbursement are ineligible unless they show an energy burden ⁠³.

Reading the FFY 2026 benefit matrices

The Regular benefit is one fixed payment set by monthly countable income, household size (1-2, 3-4, or 5 or more) and fuel ⁠¹, paid by the CBO to your supplier ⁠³. Gas, propane, fuel oil and wood matrices are winter only; summer pays electric only and cannot be split ⁠⁹.

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

From the electric ⁠⁴, natural gas ⁠⁵ and propane ⁠⁶ matrices.

Heating benefits run from $60 to $570 (the top figure is for fuel oil) and cooling from $60 to $344 ⁠³. In winter you may split the benefit between gas and electric suppliers, but the total does not grow ⁠⁹. For FFY 2027, AEO says Regular benefits rise 10% and the crisis maximum rises to $700 ⁠¹¹; the 2027 matrices were not yet posted on October 20, 2026 ⁠¹.

What counts as a LIHEAP crisis in Arkansas

The Crisis benefit, registered separately from the Regular one, pays up to $600 per season in FFY 2026; the CBO may use either or both, and if $600 is not enough you or the CBO must find another source ⁠³. You qualify if you meet the income test and, on the day you apply, have one of these ⁠³:

• a bill due within seven days, a past-due balance, a disconnect notice or service already cut off;
• a delayed payment arrangement with your utility where a missed payment would cause a shutoff;
• prepaid electric service that is about to run out;
• propane or fuel oil at 20% of tank capacity or less with the supplier refusing to deliver unpaid, seven days or less of bottled gas, or three weeks or less of wood;
• an eviction notice for unpaid energy costs, or a broken primary heating system.

CBOs must resolve a crisis within 48 hours, or 18 hours if life-threatening: a household member’s medical condition, or a forecast of 32°F or lower or 95°F or higher within 24 hours ⁠³. A failed furnace or air conditioner triggers an emergency weatherization referral, and weatherization agencies can lend a window unit until repairs are done ⁠³. Solar and other renewable-energy households cannot get Crisis benefits ⁠³.

Which CBO serves your Arkansas county

The FFY 2026 plan lists 15 CBOs ⁠³; the proposed FFY 2027 plan lists 14, after one agency quit when AEO issued a notice of deficiency ⁠¹⁰. AEO’s county lookup now names the Economic Opportunity Agency of Washington County as interim provider for nine River Valley counties ⁠⁸, though the 2026 brochure still shows the Arkansas River Valley Area Council there ⁠⁷. Trust the lookup.

Counties from AEO’s lookup ⁠⁸; phone numbers from the FFY 2026 brochure ⁠⁷.

There is no statewide online application; some CBOs have their own. Each CBO picks its intake methods (email, fax, mail, drop box, phone, text, web, in person) and may not require in-person applications ⁠³. AEO plans a statewide system for FFY 2027 but says no statewide online application exists until migration finishes ⁠¹⁰.

Applying to your CBO, step by step

1. Confirm your provider

   Pick your county on AEO’s CBO contact page and write down the agency and phone number ⁠⁸.

2. Call before the season opens

   Ask for the opening date, whether you qualify for priority intake, and how the CBO takes applications ⁠³.

3. Fill in form AEO 9495

   Complete it in ink and mark any crisis or medical need for power ⁠⁹.

4. Gather documents

   Photo ID; Social Security cards for adults and an SSN or ITIN for every member ⁠³; four weeks of income proof or a Zero Income form; recent heating and electric bills; and a lease if utilities are in your rent or you live in subsidized housing ⁠⁷⁠⁹.

5. Submit once per benefit type

   Don’t file duplicates unless told to; the CBO may ask for more documents ⁠¹.

6. Read your Notice of Action

   The CBO sends a Notice of Action (AEO 2001) stating approval or denial with a reason, the payment amount and which supplier was paid ⁠³. Check your next bill for the credit.

7. Appeal within 30 days if needed

   Send AEO’s Request for Appeal Hearing form with a copy of the Notice of Action to [email protected] or by mail to AEO in North Little Rock within 30 days of the notice date ⁠¹². You can appeal a denial, a delay, the amount, or a refused application; a hearing officer decides if AEO’s review does not resolve it ⁠³⁠¹².

Weatherization through five Arkansas subgrantees

The Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) runs year-round ⁠¹³. Income must be at or below 200% of the poverty guidelines, or a member must have received SSI or TANF cash in the past 12 months, be LIHEAP-eligible, or be certified for a HUD means-tested program ⁠¹⁴. After an energy audit, crews install air sealing, insulation, HVAC repair or replacement and smoke and CO detectors at no cost ⁠¹³. Renters need the landlord’s signature ⁠³.

The Program Year 2026 state plan runs July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027. It budgets $3,496,158 in DOE funds for at least 158 homes at a planned average of $8,547 each ⁠¹⁴, so expect a waiting list. Priority points go to a member 60 or older, a member with disabilities, a child under 19, high electricity use, and (double weight) spending over 6.9% of income on energy ⁠¹⁴. Five providers cover the state: Better Community Development, Black River Area Development, Central Arkansas Development Council, Crawford-Sebastian Community Development Council and Crowley’s Ridge Development Council ⁠¹⁴. Bring income proof, ID and 12 months of utility bills ⁠¹³.

Shutoff protections under Arkansas Public Service Commission rules

We found no statewide low-income rate discount on AEO’s site or in the Commission’s rules. The Arkansas Public Service Commission’s General Service Rules do limit shutoffs by the utilities it regulates ⁠¹⁵:

• Cold Weather Rule (6.15). No residential shutoff when 32°F or lower is forecast within 24 hours. Gas utilities also may not cut off low-income customers (approved for SNAP, WIC, TEA, Medicaid or LIHEAP) from November 1 to March 31 if they notify the utility before the shutoff date, make minimum monthly payments, and repay the deferred balance in seven installments from April to October ⁠¹⁵.
• Medical need (6.17). A doctor’s certificate stating that a shutoff would risk death or grave harm postpones disconnection, or restores service cut off within the last 30 days, for 30 days. The certificate must reach the utility within seven days of the first notice ⁠¹⁵.
• Elderly and disabled customers (6.18). Registered customers get two contact attempts before a shutoff and an offer of a delayed payment agreement. Service cannot be cut on days forecast at 95°F or higher; for gas, this applies only to gas air-conditioning customers ⁠¹⁵.
• Agency pledge (6.16). If a social service agency such as your CBO commits to pay at least one-quarter of an overdue bill, the utility must keep service on or restore it, as long as you agree to a delayed payment agreement for the rest ⁠¹⁵.

For other states’ programs and limits, see the 50-state energy assistance comparison.