Washington energy assistance: LIHEAP, weatherization and utility shutoff rules (2026-27)

Commerce funds 26 local agencies, and each one sets its own appointment process

Commerce takes an annual application from each local provider and gives preference to community action agencies. The 2026 plan and the draft 2027 plan both list 26 local administering agencies ⁠³⁠⁴. These agencies decide eligibility, pay gas, electric and bulk-fuel vendors, and install weatherization measures ⁠³.

In practice, every county works a little differently. In King County, for example, Commerce’s county listing shows two providers. Hopelink serves North and East King County and books LIHEAP and PSE HELP appointments online or at 425-658-2592, adding new slots on Mondays at 9 a.m. when the calendar is full. Byrd Barr Place serves the City of Seattle and uses an online energy assistance application ⁠⁶. Rural agencies such as Rural Resources Community Action, which covers Ferry, Lincoln, Pend Oreille and Stevens counties, have used appointment phone lines that open on set dates ⁠⁶. Some notes on the county pages refer to past seasons, so call the agency to confirm current dates.

The draft 2027 plan states that there is no statewide online application. Instead, some local agencies offer their own online forms, a PDF application can be mailed, emailed, faxed or dropped off, applications can be completed by phone, and no agency requires an in-person appointment. You can send documents in person, by mail, by email or through an agency portal ⁠⁴.

The 150% line, counted on average monthly income

Commerce’s PY27 eligibility guidelines list three basic tests. Your household has not already received a LIHEAP grant in the current October-September program year. You pay for home heating, either directly to a vendor or through your rent. And your average monthly income is at or below 150% of the federal poverty guidelines ⁠². The chart (shown above) covers households of up to 12 people. Each additional person adds $8,520 a year ⁠².

Washington looks at gross income. Wages, self-employment income, unemployment benefits, Social Security, SSI, TANF, pensions and child support all count ⁠⁴. The draft 2027 plan answers “no” to categorical eligibility, so receiving SNAP, TANF or SSI does not by itself qualify you. The agency still checks your income against the chart ⁠⁴. Washington uses no asset test for heating assistance ⁠⁴. Separately, the state spends a small part of the grant on a $20.01 nominal LIHEAP payment, once a year, to SNAP (Basic Food) households, which the state’s human services agency determines during SNAP intake. You do not apply for it ⁠⁴.

How the $250 to $1,250 heating grant is sized

Washington does not publish a statewide benefit matrix on its LIHEAP page. Commerce says the amount depends on household size, income and annual heating costs, and is set at your appointment ⁠¹. The state plans give the range: a minimum heating benefit of $250 and a maximum of $1,250, unchanged in the draft 2027 plan ⁠³⁠⁴. Commerce may raise or lower benefit levels if final federal funding differs from its estimate, and may shorten or extend the program ⁠³.

Sources: 2026 LIHEAP Model Plan ⁠³ and draft 2027 plan ⁠⁴. Each grant period runs two years because states may spend a federal grant over two fiscal years.

Every fuel counts: electricity, natural gas, propane, oil, coal and wood ⁠¹. If heat is included in your rent, or your fuel dealer has no LIHEAP vendor agreement, the agency pays you by check instead ⁠³. The agency tells you the amount in writing on the Household Information Form you sign at intake, or by letter if it cannot decide that day ⁠³.

Crisis help, air conditioners and Washington’s missing cooling grant

Each local agency writes its own crisis definition, and Commerce approves it every year. Definitions range from a shutoff notice or less than a 10-day supply of fuel to already being shut off or out of fuel ⁠³. If your utility account carries a medical-necessity note and you heat with electricity or gas, you qualify for an emergency appointment as soon as you get a past-due notice ⁠³. Agencies must resolve a crisis within 48 hours of a completed application, or 18 hours when it is life-threatening ⁠³.

Year-round crisis funds pay for Other Emergency Services: deposits to restore or start service, past-due bills, reconnection, and propane tank set-up and rental ⁠³. For a heat-related crisis, agencies can spend up to $1,000 on blankets, space heaters, fans, air conditioners, window or limited roof repair, or a small generator for a life-threatening health condition. Renters receive portable air conditioners only ⁠³. At the 2025 public hearing, commenters asked Commerce to keep air conditioning and arrearage help. Commerce answered that it will keep providing air conditioning as funding allows ⁠³. The plan also allows a supplemental benefit in July, August and September if money remains ⁠³.

Applying through your county’s LIHEAP provider

1. Find your agency

   Open Commerce’s LIHEAP map, click your county, and note the agency, its appointment phone number and any online scheduling link ⁠⁶. Some counties have more than one provider, split by city or area ⁠⁶.

2. Book the appointment as soon as slots open

   The program year starts October 1, and each household can receive only one LIHEAP grant per year ⁠². Agencies may give older adults, people with disabilities, families with young children and high-energy-burden households first access to appointments early in the year ⁠³.

3. Gather proof for everyone in the home

   Commerce lists four things you must document: identity, residence, heating costs and income ⁠¹. Bring recent pay stubs, benefit award letters, your latest utility or fuel bill, and any past-due or shutoff notice.

4. Say so if you are in crisis

   Tell the scheduler right away if you have a shutoff notice, have been disconnected, have less than 10 days of fuel, or have a medical-necessity note on your account. That moves you to the 48-hour or 18-hour track ⁠³.

5. Ask about weatherization and utility programs at the same visit

   Commerce’s plan lists joint applications that combine LIHEAP with weatherization and other Commerce energy programs ⁠³. Puget Sound Energy customers in Hopelink’s area can book PSE HELP in the same system ⁠⁶.

6. Check the decision on your Household Information Form

   It shows your benefit, and it tells you about your right to a fair hearing ⁠³.

7. Appeal within 30 days if you disagree

   Mail Commerce’s Fair Hearing Request Form within 30 calendar days of the agency’s written decision. Commerce has 30 working days to respond, holds the hearing by phone, and mails a written decision within 10 working days after it ⁠³.

The November 15 to March 15 shutoff protection

Washington law gives LIHEAP-eligible households a winter shield that is separate from the grant. It applies to utilities regulated by the Utilities and Transportation Commission ⁠⁸, city utilities ⁠⁹ and public utility districts ⁠¹⁰. From November 15 through March 15, the utility cannot cut off residential heating service if you do all of the following ⁠⁸:

• Tell the utility you cannot pay, ideally within five business days of the overdue notice.
• Self-certify your last 12 months of income to a Commerce LIHEAP grantee. The grantee confirms you are under the state LIHEAP limit and calculates 7% of your income.
• Apply for heating assistance and for weatherization, if weatherization is available.
• Agree to a payment plan of no more than 7% of monthly income plus one-twelfth of the arrears, with the past-due balance paid off by the following October 15.

If the past-due bill is not paid by October 15, you lose the protection until it is paid ⁠⁸. Each of these utilities must also offer LIHEAP-eligible customers budget billing year-round, whether they rent or own ⁠⁸.

In summer, regulated electric, water and thermal utilities ⁠⁸ and public utility districts ⁠¹⁰ cannot disconnect a home for nonpayment on any day when the National Weather Service has issued, or announced it will issue, a heat-related alert for the area. If you were already disconnected, you can ask for reconnection on those days ⁠⁸. The plan adds that a utility may require a repayment plan of up to 6% of monthly income ⁠³.

Weatherization at 200%, and utility discounts that vary by provider

Commerce’s Weatherization Program is a separate service run by local weatherization agencies, often the same community action agency ⁠⁷. Homeowners and renters qualify at up to 200% of the poverty guidelines, 60% of state median income or 80% of area median income ⁠⁷. At 200% of 2026 poverty, the limit for four is $66,000. An auditor inspects the home, then the agency installs only cost-effective measures: insulation, air sealing, weather stripping, ventilation, LED lighting, heating and hot water servicing, and smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. Commerce stresses that it does not replace windows ⁠⁷. LIHEAP-funded weatherization is capped at $20,000 per household, with priority for older adults, people with disabilities, children 18 and under, and high energy users or burden ⁠⁴. Commerce warns that some agencies have long waitlists ⁠⁷.

Washington has no single statewide bill discount. Instead, RCW 19.405.120 requires every electric utility to make sure each low-income household can reach an energy assistance program, so the discount depends on who serves you ⁠¹¹. A 2026 law (chapter 252, Laws of 2026) created a statewide low-income energy assistance program within Commerce, to be paid out as credits on participating utilities’ bills, but only subject to appropriation. Commerce must start paying assistance within 14 months after funding is appropriated ⁠¹². As of October 20, 2026, Commerce’s LIHEAP page offers no enrollment in it ⁠¹. Two large utilities run their own programs:

• Puget Sound Energy. HELP is a $250 to $1,000 grant applied to the account, and the Bill Discount Rate cuts bills by 5% to 45%. Both are open to households at or below 80% of area median income or 200% of poverty, whichever is higher. Most applicants need no income documents ⁠¹³.
• Seattle City Light and Seattle Public Utilities. The Utility Discount Program takes 60% off City Light bills and 50% off water, sewer and garbage. On January 1, 2027, eligibility moves from a state-median-income standard to 60% of area median income, which the City Council estimates adds 31,000 households ⁠¹⁴.

Compare Washington with other states on the energy and utility assistance page, or see Washington’s first-time homebuyer guide.