Indiana energy assistance: EAP, winter shutoff moratorium and weatherization (2026-27)

Nineteen Local Service Providers and the new LITT portal

IHCDA does not decide applications itself. It funds 18 community action agencies and one other nonprofit, called Local Service Providers (LSPs), which collect documents, decide eligibility and send payments to your utility ⁠². Each must run at least one walk-in site in every county it serves for the whole application period and IHCDA expects every LSP to take applications by phone during business hours ⁠³ ⁠². On IHCDA’s county map, for example, Interlocal Community Action Program covers 11 counties, Brightpoint (Community Action of Northeast Indiana) serves Allen County, CoAction serves Lake County, and John H. Boner Neighborhood Centers handles EAP for Marion County ⁠¹.

For Program Year 2027, IHCDA dropped the EAPConnect system. All online applications now go through a statewide portal called LITT at eap.mylitt.com, which opened October 1, 2026 at 8:00 AM ⁠¹. When you register with an email address, LITT issues a login number and code that you will need to check your status or file an appeal online ⁠¹. You can still apply by mail or in person through your LSP ⁠¹.

How Indiana counts income: three months against 60% of state median income

Most states test LIHEAP income against 150% of the poverty guidelines. Indiana uses the other federal option, 60% of state median income, which is higher for most household sizes: $64,533 a year for four ⁠¹, compared with $49,500 at 150% of the 2026 poverty guidelines (three quarters of the $66,000 weatherization limit IHCDA prints at 200%) ⁠⁴. IHCDA’s PY2027 chart is the same one the PY2026 manual printed, based on a federal fiscal year 2026 Indiana median income of $107,555 for a family of four ⁠³.

The LSP adds up gross income for every household member 18 or older over the most recent three consecutive months (or 13 weeks) and multiplies it by four ⁠³. A paystub must be dated within 90 days before the application ⁠³. You must have lived in Indiana for at least 30 days. Photo ID and Social Security cards are no longer required: the applicant lists everyone’s Social Security number and signs to certify it ⁠³. A household member who does not have or will not give a number is treated as an ineligible household member ⁠³.

Renters whose heat or electricity is included in the rent can qualify, but only if they pay part of the rent themselves (rent that is 100% subsidized shows no energy burden). They supply a Tenant Verification Statement or lease, and IHCDA pays them directly instead of a utility ⁠² ⁠¹.

The EAP point matrix: from $100 to $625

Your regular benefit comes from a point matrix. Each point is worth $25, and an electric benefit is added on top because a furnace needs electricity to run ⁠³. The PY2026 manual sets the categories below, and the draft PY2027 plan keeps the same $100 minimum, $625 maximum and $50 bonus for vulnerable households ⁠² ⁠³.

Heat included in rent: 2 income points, 0 dwelling and fuel points and a $50 electric benefit, regardless of income ⁠³.

For a household of four, the 30% line is $32,266 a year and the 45% line is $48,399 ⁠³. A family of four earning $30,000 in a single-family home heated by natural gas, with a 4-year-old, scores 9 + 3 + 1 + 2 = 15 points ($375) plus a $125 electric benefit, for $500. The same family heating with propane scores 20 points, the $500 cap, plus $125, for $625 ⁠³.

Benefits go straight to your vendors, which must credit your account and carry any surplus forward ⁠². If a regulated utility account already holds a credit above $250 (or a bulk fuel account above $500), the LSP still approves your household but holds that part of the benefit until the balance drops ⁠³.

When a shutoff notice becomes an EAP crisis

Crisis help is added on top of the regular benefit and must be delivered within crisis time frames. It covers the exact amount needed to stop a pending disconnection, restore service, or clear the balance on a payment plan, up to $400 per utility ⁠². A home with an electric furnace can get $400 on the electric account for heat plus $400 for electric service, $800 in all ⁠². Deposits cannot be paid, but reconnection fees can ⁠³. If you heat with propane, oil, wood or another bulk fuel, or use prepaid electricity, you are treated as in crisis automatically and receive the full $400 at approval to cover minimum delivery amounts ⁠².

LSPs must take a mitigating action within 48 hours of a crisis and within 18 hours in a life-threatening crisis. That means service is off or bulk fuel has run out in a household with someone 60 or older, a child 5 or younger, a person with a disability or a veteran, or there is a documented medical need with an extreme safety concern ⁠². Households that have not used their whole crisis allotment can return once from March 1 to the end of the application period for a second round ⁠².

If the furnace itself has failed, ask about Emergency Repair and Replacement (ERR). It is limited to homeowners with a vulnerable member, covers one repair a year and one replacement every 10 years at the same address, and does not apply to homes in foreclosure. In PY2026, ERR work could not start before November 1 ⁠³.

Indiana’s December 1 to March 15 shutoff moratorium

Under Indiana Code 8-1-2-121, electric and natural gas utilities may not disconnect a residential customer from December 1 through March 15 if that customer receives EAP, or qualifies for it and has applied ⁠⁶. The rule covers investor-owned utilities, municipal utilities and rural electric membership cooperatives. It does not cover propane or other bulk fuel dealers, or water, sewer or phone service ⁠⁶. IHCDA tells applicants to inform their utility that they have applied. The OUCC says the customer must give the utility written proof, and IHCDA’s plan also counts notice sent by the LSP or IHCDA ⁠¹ ⁠⁶ ⁠². Protection ends at once if you are denied, but it comes back while an appeal is pending ⁠².

Outside the moratorium, IHCDA’s vendor agreement requires a utility to pause disconnection for 14 days once it learns you have applied, and to keep or restore service for at least 30 days after it accepts your EAP benefit ⁠⁵. The moratorium does not cancel what you owe. The OUCC urges partial payments through the winter to lower the risk of a spring shutoff, and a utility must delay a disconnection by 10 days if you give it a medical statement from a licensed doctor or public health official ⁠⁶. EAP approval can also qualify you for discounted rates that some utilities run as Universal Service Programs; ask your utility whether it offers one ⁠³.

Applying for EAP in Indiana, step by step

1. Find your LSP

   On IHCDA’s EAP page, click your county on the map or pick it from the drop-down. The Energy Assistance Program tab shows the agency and phone number ⁠¹.

2. Gather three months of income proof

   Collect pay stubs, benefit letters and other income records for every adult for the last three months (or 13 weeks) ⁠³. If someone has no income, tell the LSP so it can document that.

3. Collect your energy bills

   Bring a current bill or account statement for your heating fuel and electricity, plus any disconnection notice or payment plan. Renters with utilities in the rent need a Tenant Verification Statement or current lease ⁠¹.

4. Apply between October 1, 2026 and April 30, 2027

   Apply online through LITT, or by mail, phone or in person through your LSP ⁠¹. Homebound applicants can ask the LSP for a home visit ⁠².

5. Report a crisis right away

   Tell your LSP if you have a disconnection notice, are within 10 days of running out of bulk fuel, or are already disconnected ⁠¹. That starts the 48-hour or 18-hour clock.

6. Tell your utility you applied

   Give it proof of your application so the moratorium and the 14-day pause apply ⁠⁶ ⁠⁵.

7. Wait for the decision letter

   LSPs have up to 55 days to decide (counted from October 1 for early filers), and the utility may take another 30 days to post the credit. A direct payment can take up to 120 days to arrive ⁠¹. Keep paying your bills meanwhile.

8. Appeal or reapply

   Send a written appeal to your LSP, or use the LITT portal, within 30 days of the decision. The LSP must answer within 14 calendar days. A second-level appeal goes to IHCDA’s EAP Community Programs Manager at [email protected] or by mail, without new documents ⁠¹. After a denial you can file a new application 55 days after the previous one ⁠¹. IHCDA’s plan reports 142 fair hearings in the prior year, 9 of which reversed the decision ⁠².

Weatherization through Indiana’s LSPs: 200% of poverty and a waitlist

The Weatherization Assistance Program is a separate, free service funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and by 9% of Indiana’s LIHEAP grant. It is open to renters and owners ⁠⁴ ⁠². The income limit is 200% of the 2026 poverty guidelines, effective February 23, 2026: $31,920 for one person and $66,000 for four. Any household found eligible for EAP also qualifies ⁠⁴. Eligible applicants go on a waitlist. When your turn comes, a state-trained auditor does a free energy audit, and contractors install insulation, air sealing, duct and pipe insulation, efficient lighting, smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, and heating system repairs or replacements ⁠⁴. It is not a home repair program: roofs, siding and windows are generally not covered, and IHCDA does not allow either funding source to replace air conditioners ⁠⁴ ⁠². Renters need written landlord consent, and homes weatherized before may not qualify again ⁠² ⁠⁴.

Your WAP provider may differ from your EAP provider. In Marion County, Community Action of Greater Indianapolis runs weatherization while John H. Boner Neighborhood Centers runs EAP ⁠¹. Problems or denials go first to the agency’s executive director, then to IHCDA’s weatherization manager at [email protected] ⁠⁴.

For more Indiana programs, see the Indiana assistance hub, or compare states on the energy and utility assistance page.