SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Description: States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico are required by the Low-Income Energy Assistance Act of 1981 (42 U.S.C. 8624, sec. 2610) to report statistics for the previous federal fiscal year on the following:

• Assisted and applicant households, by type of LIHEAP assistance and funding source;
• Assisted households receiving nominal payments of $50 or less, by funding source;
• Assisted households receiving only utility payment assistance, by funding source; this information will automatically be transferred to the grant recipient's Performance Data Form;
• Assisted households, regardless of the type(s) of LIHEAP assistance or funding source, excluding households that only receive nominal payments of $50 or less;
• Assisted households, by type of LIHEAP assistance and funding source, having at least one vulnerable member who is at least 60 years or older, disabled, or 5 years old or younger;
• Assisted households, by type of LIHEAP assistance and funding source, with at least one member age 2 years or under;
• Assisted households, by type of LIHEAP assistance and funding source, with at least one member ages 3 years through 5 years;
• Assisted households, regardless of the type(s) of LIHEAP assistance or funding source, having at least one member 60 years or older, disabled, or 5 years old or younger.

Indian tribal grant recipients are required to submit data only on the number of households, by funding source, receiving heating, cooling, energy crisis, and/or weatherization benefits. To account for this difference, tribal grant recipients use the Annual LIHEAP Household Report.

Short Format

The information is being collected for the department's annual LIHEAP report to Congress. The data also provides information about the need for LIHEAP funds. Finally, the data are used in the calculation of LIHEAP performance measures under the Government Performance and Results Act of 1993. The data elements will allow for the accuracy of measuring LIHEAP targeting performance and LIHEAP cost efficiency.

OCS proposes revisions to reduce the administrative burden and length of form. The proposed revisions include the following:

• Remove reporting requirements related to sex, race, and ethnicity, which are not required for statutory LIHEAP reporting or performance measurement.
• Remove data elements associated with supplemental LIHEAP funding provided under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act and the American Rescue Plan Act, as these funding sources have expired and are no longer applicable to ongoing program operations.

Additionally, OCS proposes to adjust the burden estimates to no longer account for burden at the household level. This report is an administrative request for grant recipients, and the LIHEAP statute gives grant recipients flexibility on how they collect household data.

Overall, these targeted changes reduce respondent burden, improve clarity of reporting instruments, and ensure the collection remains focused on current statutory and programmatic requirements.

Respondents: State governments, tribal governments, U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia. ( printed page 17973)

Annual Burden Estimates: Burden estimates have been updated to reflect the changes described above, which include revisions to the report as well as an adjustment to the burden estimates for respondents, to reduce burden at the household level. This burden has been reduced by analyzing fiscal year 2026 LIHEAP Model Plans to calculate how grant recipients determine eligibility. Based on LIHEAP Model Plans, 25 of the 52 state grant recipients use categorical eligibility to determine LIHEAP household eligibility. LIHEAP categorical eligibility makes a household automatically income-eligible for energy assistance if any member receives benefits from programs like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or Supplemental Security Income, bypassing the typical income test, though income is still used to set benefit amounts. This simplifies and reduces the burden on households. Based on past average data, those 25 states make up about 55 percent of all assisted households. To calculate this burden, we used an estimate for the annual number of LIHEAP household applicants multiplied by an average of 1/3 of an hour to provide the data required by the Household Report. The estimated time per response for the short format, completed by tribal governments in some small territories, was reduced from 10 hours to six hours per response. The long format, completed by all states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, was reduced from 67 hours to 41 hours per response.

Comments: The Department specifically requests comments on (a) whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information; (c) the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, including through the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of information technology. Consideration will be given to comments and suggestions submitted within 60 days of this publication.

Authority:42 U.S.C. 8629 and 45 CFR 96.82.