Florida energy and utility bill assistance: LIHEAP, crisis aid and weatherization (2026)

How FloridaCommerce splits LIHEAP between county providers and a statewide portal

Florida has two front doors. The first is the county provider: FloridaCommerce’s list assigns one agency to each of the 67 counties. Some are community action agencies covering a whole region, such as Suwannee River Economic Council, Inc. (Bradford, Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Madison, Suwannee, Taylor and Union counties). Others are county governments, such as Miami-Dade County Community Action Agency (786-469-4640) and the Hillsborough County Social Services Department (813-272-5220, option 2) ⁠⁶.

The second is the statewide online application at floridaliheap.com, run with the vendor Promise. The State Plan names it as Florida’s statewide online application ⁠². On October 20, 2026, though, the portal stated that LIHEAP applications were not being accepted and told visitors to return later or contact their local agency ⁠⁵. Until it reopens, apply on paper or by phone through the county provider.

Florida also enrolls some households without any application. Households in a categorically eligible program that can be matched to a Florida utility account can receive LIHEAP automatically ⁠². Promise contacts these households by message, and replying NO opts out ⁠⁴.

Florida’s 60%-of-median-income test and how last month’s pay is counted

Florida uses 60% of state median income (SMI) for heating, cooling and crisis help, not 150% of the poverty guidelines ⁠². For most household sizes that is the more generous test. The FFY 2026 limit for four, $61,837, compares with $49,500 at 150% of the 2026 HHS guidelines ⁠³⁠⁹. The limits come from the HHS SMI estimates issued February 7, 2025, and took effect October 1, 2025 ⁠³.

The test uses gross income for the 30 days before you apply, compared against a monthly limit: $5,153 for a household of four ⁠⁴. The FAQ labels this chart “2025,” but it equals the FFY 2026 annual limits divided by 12 ⁠⁴⁠³. Countable income includes wages before deductions, Social Security, SSI, pensions, TANF, child support and alimony. The FAQ excludes SNAP, WIC, Medicaid, housing assistance, income of minors, tax refunds, loans and scholarships ⁠⁴.

If anyone in the household receives SNAP, TANF or SSI, the provider accepts the award letter in place of income proof and further citizenship documents ⁠². At least one household member must be a U.S. citizen or qualified alien, but you must still report income for everyone in the home ⁠⁴.

The Home Energy matrix: $200 to $350 base plus up to $350 in add-ons

Florida pays one “Home Energy” award (heating or cooling) based on income, household size and who lives in the home. The FFY 2026 payment matrix places each household in one of four bands, measured against its 60%-of-SMI limit, not against the poverty line ⁠³.

Scroll the table sideways to see every column.

Add-ons, one of each: $100 if the household includes someone 60 or older, $100 for a member with a disability, and $150 for a child age 5 or younger ⁠³. The State Plan lists heating and cooling benefits of $400 to $1,350, which does not match the matrix; ask your provider which amounts it is paying ⁠².

The heating season ran October 1, 2025 through March 31, 2026, and cooling ran April 1 through September 30, 2026 ⁠². Under the portal FAQ, a household can receive one Home Energy award a year, and eligibility resets one year after the last award. Awards also depend on the funds left in your county ⁠⁴. LIHEAP pays natural gas or propane only in winter and only when it is your main heating fuel. It does not pay water, sewer, phone or internet bills ⁠¹⁠⁴.

Crisis awards when a Florida utility has sent a delinquency notice

Crisis Assistance runs year-round ⁠². It does not require a final shutoff. To qualify, a household must meet one of four conditions ⁠²:

• It has received a delinquency notice.
• Its power or gas is already off.
• It needs to pay a utility deposit.
• It is within seven days of running out on a prepaid energy account.

The award is the amount that resolves the crisis, and a household can receive several crisis awards in one year up to the cap ⁠². The FFY 2026 State Plan sets that cap at $2,000, but the floridaliheap.com FAQ says $1,000, resetting each October 1 ⁠²⁠⁴. If you owe more than the award, the utility may require you to pay the rest before it restores service ⁠⁴.

Providers must resolve a life-threatening crisis within 18 hours. Florida defines that as reliable information that hot or cold weather puts a household member’s life or health at risk. For any other crisis the deadline is 48 hours ⁠². Crisis funds can cover reconnection, late and disconnection fees and deposits. They cannot cover fees for meter tampering or returned checks ⁠⁴. In subsidized housing, any Section 8 or public housing energy allowance is subtracted from the crisis award, and households whose energy is fully included in rent are not eligible ⁠².

After a presidential or governor-declared emergency, FloridaCommerce can release crisis money for hurricane-type needs. Allowed uses include temporary housing, transportation to shelters, generators and fuel, electrical repairs, and air-conditioning repair or replacement ⁠².

Applying through your county provider while the portal is closed

1. Find your county’s agency

   Open FloridaCommerce’s provider list (www.FloridaJobs.org/LIHEAPHelp) and note the agency, phone numbers and any online application link for your county ⁠⁶. Some offices, such as Tri-County Community Council’s, close on Fridays ⁠⁶.

2. Check the statewide portal once

   If floridaliheap.com is accepting applications again, apply there and upload documents through the site ⁠⁴. If it is still closed, use the provider’s own link or ask by phone how it takes applications ⁠⁵⁠⁶.

3. Get the paper form if needed

   FloridaCommerce posts the application in English, Spanish and Haitian Creole. Mail or deliver it to your county provider ⁠⁴.

4. Gather last month’s documents

   You need names, birth dates and Social Security numbers for everyone in the home, photo ID for the applicant only, citizenship or immigration papers, and gross income proof for every adult for the previous month ⁠⁴. If no one had income, include a signed statement saying so ⁠⁴.

5. Add the bill and any notice

   Include your most recent energy bill showing the account number and service address, and any delinquency or disconnection notice. Propane users without a monthly bill send their latest delivery receipt ⁠⁴. Renters whose bill is not in their name add a lease or landlord note showing they pay for utilities ⁠⁴.

6. Flag an emergency

   If service is off, or heat or cooling is putting someone’s health at risk, say so at intake to start the 18- or 48-hour clock. Call 9-1-1 if a life is in danger ⁠²⁠⁴.

7. Wait for the letter

   Providers must act within 15 business days of receiving the application, and the approval or denial letter states the amount paid and your appeal rights ⁠². The award goes straight to your utility account ⁠⁴.

Weatherization through FloridaCommerce’s WAP network

The Weatherization Assistance Program is separate from LIHEAP in Florida. It is funded mainly by the U.S. Department of Energy with supplemental HHS money, and FloridaCommerce grants it to community action agencies, local governments, tribes and nonprofits ⁠⁷. It does not pay bills. Crews seal air leaks, add attic insulation (floor insulation in northern counties only), install attic ventilation and solar screens, coat manufactured-home roofs, and repair or replace inefficient heating, cooling and water-heating units ⁠⁷.

The income limit is 200% of the HHS poverty guidelines ⁠⁷. When FloridaCommerce’s WAP page was captured in March 2026, its table still listed $62,400 for a family of four, which is 200% of the 2024 guidelines ⁠⁷. At 200% of the 2026 guidelines the figure is $66,000 ⁠⁹. Ask your local office which chart it is using. Priority goes to people 60 and older, people with disabilities, families with children under 12, and households with high energy bills ⁠⁷. Renters need the landlord’s permission, and eligible households usually join a waiting list ⁠⁸. Applications are taken only by local weatherization offices, not online ⁠⁷.

What Florida rules do, and do not do, to stop a disconnection

The sources reviewed for this guide show no statewide low-income discount rate and no summer or winter shutoff moratorium in Florida. The protections that do exist come from Public Service Commission rules for investor-owned electric utilities. Municipal utilities and cooperatives set their own policies.

• Notice and timing. A utility must give at least 5 working days’ written notice, separate from the bill, before disconnecting for nonpayment. You can name a third party to receive a copy. A utility may not disconnect a residential customer between noon Friday and 8 a.m. Monday, or from noon on the day before a holiday ⁠¹⁰. Complaints go to the PSC at 1-800-342-3552 ⁠¹⁰.
• Debts that are not yours. A utility cannot cut you off for a previous occupant’s unpaid bill, unless you lived there when the debt built up, or for an unpaid gas or water bill ⁠¹⁰.
• Medically essential service. If someone depends on electric medical equipment, a Florida-licensed physician can certify your service as medically essential. You must recertify every 12 months ⁠¹¹. The utility may not charge an extra deposit. It must also try to phone you at least 24 hours before a scheduled disconnection and, if it cannot reach you, send someone to the home by 4 p.m. the day before ⁠¹¹. Certification does not cancel the bill. You still have to arrange payment ⁠¹¹.

Appealing a Florida LIHEAP denial within 10 working days

Appeals go to the local provider, not FloridaCommerce. You have 10 working days after receiving the written denial to file a written appeal with the provider’s program supervisor. The provider must answer in writing within 10 business days ⁠². If you disagree, you have 5 business days to object to the agency’s executive director or board chair, whose written answer within 10 days is final ⁠². The same process applies if your application was not acted on within 15 business days ⁠².

FFY 2027 began October 1, 2026, and Florida had not yet posted new limits or a new matrix when this guide was checked; confirm figures with your provider. For other help in the state, see the Florida hub or compare states on the energy and utility assistance page.