Today Congressman Chris Pappas (NH-01) led 89 of his colleagues in calling for the protection of the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and the rehiring of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) staff who manage the LIHEAP program that were fired this week.
LIHEAP assists low-income individuals and families with the costs of heating and cooling their homes and helps to mitigate the impacts of rising energy costs and extreme weather events. Across the nation, LIHEAP helps nearly 6 million households afford their energy bills. In Fiscal Year 2023, over 29,000 New Hampshire households benefited from an average savings of $1,579.
In the letter, the members wrote, “This program is vital for millions of families, and in fact is oversubscribed.More than 25 million American households report foregoing food and medicine to pay their energy bills, and of those, 7 million households report that they face that decision every month. LIHEAP benefits target households who need the assistance the most, particularly those that have a high home energy burden and or have household members who are elderly, disabled, and or young children.”
They continued, “In Fiscal Year 2023, nearly 6 million households received LIHEAP assistance, and LIHEAP restored power or prevented disconnections over 2.7 million times for American families… Moreover, LIHEAP supported 1.4 million households in crisis assistance. This is not funding that can wait; a team must be in place to support this program’s work. By removing the staff responsible for managing this vital program, this administration has directly burdened the families in our country who need our support most.
“Gutting this program’s staff is a reckless and irresponsible decision which may cost these families’ lives. We urge you to immediately reverse this decision and do all you can to support the work of this vital program,” the members concluded.
The letter is endorsed by the National Energy Assistance Directors Association:
“LIHEAP helps almost six million very poor families pay their home energy bills during the winter heating and summer cooling seasons, and it cannot operate without program administrative staff. The program’s administrative staff is responsible for running the program allocation formula, managing day-to-day operational concerns, conducting research to help us better understand how to help low income families stay safe during the cold winter months and increasingly hot summer months and identifying ways to improve the delivery of program services,” said Mark Wolfe, Executive Director of the National Energy Assistance Directors Association. “We hope that Secretary Kennedy will take the letter seriously and respond positively by rehiring the program administrative staff so that no family should have to struggle between paying their home energy bill or food, clothing, and medicine.”
Background:
Congressman Chris Pappas is a fierce advocate for efforts that lower energy costs for Granite Staters and programs that help low-income families pay their bills, including the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). Pappas has repeatedly called for increased funding for the LIHEAP program and the urgent delivery of this relief to families who need it. Through the appropriations process and legislation such as the American Rescue Plan and the bipartisan infrastructure law, Pappas has secured increased funding for this vital program. The American Rescue Plan more than doubled LIHEAP funding and the bipartisan infrastructure law secured a five-year $500 million investment into the program.
Pappas also supported the Inflation Reduction Act which included extending tax credits for renewable energy to help bring down energy costs for consumers. Last Congress, he helped introduce the bipartisan Banning Oil Exports to Foreign Adversaries Act to ensure prioritization of lowering costs for Americans at home. Pappas also introduced bipartisan legislation to bolster northeast energy reserves to ensure they can provide proper assistance in the event of supply disruptions or emergency energy needs.
Read the letter below or here:
Dear Secretary Kennedy,
We write to you regarding the administration’s decision to eliminate the entire staff responsible for administering the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
As you know, on April 1, 2025, approximately 10,000 employees at HHS received notice that they had been placed on administrative leave until June 2, 2025, after which their position would be terminated. These layoffs included the entirety of the team at the Office of Community Services within the Office of the Administration for Children and Families, which leads dozens of programs, including LIHEAP. It has been reported that these terminations were also a surprise to the state-level LIHEAP administrators who distribute the program’s aid dollars to families in their communities.
This program is vital for millions of families, and in fact is oversubscribed. More than 25 million American households report foregoing food and medicine to pay their energy bills, and of those, 7 million households report that they face that decision every month. LIHEAP benefits target households who need the assistance the most, particularly those that have a high home energy burden and or have household members who are elderly, disabled, and or young children. In Fiscal Year 2023, 2.1 million recipient households included an individual with a disability, 966,000 households included a young child, and 2.4 million households included an elderly adult. The program is a lifeline for American families who struggle to heat their home in the winter and cool their homes in the summer.
Though the staff of 25 employees account for only a small fraction of the announced layoffs, they are responsible for administering billions of dollars each year to support millions of families across the nation in heating and cooling their homes. Each year, all 50 states, the District of Columbia, five U.S. territories, and about 150 tribes apply for funds through the HHS division that you have eliminated. In Fiscal Year 2023, nearly 6 million households received LIHEAP assistance, and LIHEAP restored power or prevented disconnections over 2.7 million times for American families because the staff within the Office of Community Services processed each state and territory’s application for funds. Without any federal employees working to support LIHEAP, states and territories will not see the flow of funding to their state, and families across the country that rely on these funds may see their utilities shut off.
Moreover, LIHEAP supported 1.4 million households in crisis assistance. This is not funding that can wait; a team must be in place to support this program’s work. By removing the staff responsible for managing this vital program, this administration has directly burdened the families in our country who need our support most.
Gutting this program’s staff is a reckless and irresponsible decision which may cost these families’ lives. We urge you to immediately reverse this decision and do all you can to support the work of this vital program.
Sincerely,