1. (a) Income. All gross earned and unearned income that the household receives, except for income exclusions per (b) of this Section, determines a household financial eligibility, per Section 8624 of Title 42 of the United States Code (42 U.S.C. § 8624). Oklahoma Human Services (OKDHS) Energy Assistance (EA) eligibility staff converts income received more than once per month from the same source to a monthly amount and rounds it to the nearest dollar. When an overpayment recoupment or a garnishment reduces a household member's income, EA eligibility staff uses the gross amount before the recoupment or garnishment.
2. (1) Gross income standard. Eligible households' income must not exceed the gross income standard, per OKDHS Appendix C-7, Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program Income and Resource Level by Household Size.
3. (A) When the household includes one or more ineligible alien(s), EA eligibility staff uses part of the ineligible alien(s)' income to determine gross income for the other household members. Refer to (4) of this subsection to determine the ineligible alien(s)' countable income portion. The ineligible alien(s) is not considered in household size when determining the gross income standard for the other household members.
4. (B) When all household members and their income are included in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) food benefits, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), State Supplemental Payment (SSP) cash assistance, Soonercare (Medicaid) for the aged, blind, or disabled, or Child Care Subsidy benefits, eligibility staff uses the gross income used to establish eligibility for the other program to determine eligibility for Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) benefits, per 42 U.S.C. § 8624(j). When the household reports income from a new source or does not report income currently considered for another benefit on the LIHEAP application, the household must verify the income from the new source or verify that previous income is terminated, per (2) and (3) of this subsection.
5. (C) When some, but not all, household members are included in other benefits, the gross income of the household member(s) whose income was not verified must be determined for the application month, per (2) and (3) of this subsection.
6. (D) When the household does not receive other benefits, the household's gross income for the application month is verified and calculated to determine income eligibility, per (2) and (3) of this subsection.
7. (2) Earned income. Earned income is income a household member receives in the form of wages, commission, self-employment, or training allowances, and for which he or she puts forth labor. When all household members' earned income is not established for another program and a household member works for an employer, EA eligibility staff calculates gross earned income for the application month. When a household member is self-employed or a contract employee, EA eligibility staff averages the household member's income over 12 months to determine the average gross monthly income.
8. (A) When the household member receives an hourly wage, has not received all earned income for the month by the application date, and his or her income fluctuates, EA eligibility staff uses the last 30-calendar days of income to anticipate income for the pay periods not yet received. When the household member:
9. (i) receives an extra paycheck in the application month due to a third or fifth week and the income is ongoing, the last 30-calendar days of income is used to determine countable monthly income instead of counting the extra paycheck; or
10. (ii) starts a new job and the amount of the first paycheck is not known, the earnings are not considered.
11. (B) When the household member's income does not fluctuate, income received during the month prior to the application month may be used.
12. (C) Annual salary, contract, or self-employment income is divided over a 12-month period to determine countable monthly income.
13. (D) To arrive at the monthly gross earned income when the household member is self-employed and:
14. (i) filed an income tax return on the self-employment income for the most recent tax year, the gross self-employment income, including capital gains, shown on the income tax return is divided by 12. When the business operated less than 12 months, the self-employment income is divided by the number of months the business operated; or
15. (ii) did not file an income tax return for the most recent tax year, the gross self-employment income, including capital gains, shown on the household member's business records is divided by 12 or the number of months the business was in operation when the business operated less than 12 months.
16. (3) Unearned income. Unearned income is income a household receives that is not in the form of wages, self-employment, or training allowances and for which a person does not put forth labor. Unearned income received or expected to be received during the month of application is considered unless it is excluded per (b) of this Section.
17. (4) Income calculation for an ineligible alien. An ineligible alien is a person who does not meet the eligibility criteria, per Oklahoma Administrative Code (OAC) 340:20-1-10(d). When an ineligible alien is part of an eligible household, the ineligible alien's earned and unearned gross income and that of his or her ineligible dependents is calculated in the same manner as it is for other household members. The ineligible alien's countable income portion is computed per (A) through (E) of this paragraph and added to household income for the eligible members before determining if the household meets the gross income standard per OKDHS Appendix C-7.
18. (A) Subtract the earned income deduction, per OKDHS Appendix C-7 for each employed ineligible alien.
19. (B) Add the ineligible alien's unearned income.
20. (C) Subtract the need standard, per OKDHS Appendix C-1, Maximum Income, Resource, and Payment Standards Schedule IX, for the ineligible alien and his or her ineligible alien dependents who:
21. (i) are claimable for federal personal income taxes;
22. (ii) live in the same household; and
23. (iii) are not included in the household size when determining the gross income standard or the LIHEAP benefit level for the eligible household members.
24. (D) Subtract all applicable deductions per (c) of this Section for the ineligible alien(s).
25. (E) The remaining amount is added to the countable income of the household members eligible for LIHEAP.
26. (b) Income exclusions. Exclude from countable income any income that is excluded by SNAP, TANF, SSP, Soonercare (Medicaid) for the aged, blind, or disabled, or Child Care Subsidy when the income recipient receives one of these benefits. When the income recipient does not receive SNAP, TANF, SSP, Soonercare (Medicaid) for the aged, blind, or disabled, or Child Care Subsidy, LIHEAP excludes the income excluded by the SNAP income exclusions in OAC 340:50-7-22.
27. (c) Income deductions. The household must meet the gross income standard for its household size, per OKDHS Appendix C-7 before allowing applicable income deductions, per (1) through (5) of this subsection except for self-employment business expenses. After allowing income deductions, the net income is used to determine the benefit amount, per (d) of this Section. Deductible expenses include:
28. (1) verified non-reimbursed medical expenses paid by persons 60 years of age and older or persons considered disabled, per OAC 340:50-5-4;
29. (2) legally binding child support paid by a household member to, or for a non-household member when verified, including payments made to a third party on behalf of the non-household member;
30. (3) the earned income deduction, per OKDHS Appendix C-7 for each employed household member;
31. (4) when self-employed, 50 percent of the household member's gross self-employment income for incurred business expenses. Self-employed business expenses are subtracted before determining if the household meets gross income standards, per OKDHS Appendix C-7. When the household member did not incur business expenses, he or she is not eligible for a business expense deduction. The household member is also eligible for the earned income deduction per (3) of this subsection when he or she does not take out a salary from the business; and
32. (5) child care copayment when the household receives Child Care Subsidy benefits through OKDHS.
33. (d) Benefit amount. Refer to OKDHS Appendix C-7-A, Estimated Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) Benefit Level for all Households, to determine the LIHEAP benefit amount. The LIHEAP benefit amount is based on household size, excluding ineligible aliens, the household's net income after applicable deductions are subtracted per (c) of this Section, and the main energy source.
34. (e) Resources. Liquid resources, such as, but not limited to, cash on hand, checking or savings accounts, certificates of deposits, stocks or bonds, bitcoin, or other cryptocurrency, cannot exceed the allowable resource level, per OKDHS Appendix C-7. The applicant's statement is accepted as verification unless the information is inconsistent or questionable.

Amended at 9 Ok Reg 191, eff 10-17-91 (emergency)

Amended at 9 Ok Reg 2455, eff 6-25-92

Amended at 10 Ok Reg 637, eff 12-14-92 (emergency)

Amended at 10 Ok Reg 2259, eff 6-11-93

Amended at 11 Ok Reg 483, eff 11-15-93 (emergency)

Amended at 11 Ok Reg 1671, eff 5-12-94

Amended at 12 Ok Reg 377, eff 11-17-94 (emergency)

Amended at 12 Ok Reg 1713, eff 6-12-95

Amended at 14 Ok Reg 577, eff 12-12-96 (emergency)

Amended at 14 Ok Reg 1336, eff 5-12-97

Amended at 15 Ok Reg 152, eff 12-1-97 (emergency)

Amended at 15 Ok Reg 378, eff 1-1-98 (emergency)

Amended at 15 Ok Reg 1604, eff 5-11-98

Amended at 20 Ok Reg 2912, eff 10-1-03 (emergency)

Amended at 21 Ok Reg 837, eff 4-26-04

Amended at 25 Ok Reg 1301, eff 6-1-08

Amended at 26 Ok Reg 816, eff 6-1-09

Amended at 27 Ok Reg 1195, eff 6-1-10

Amended at 28 Ok Reg 805, eff 6-1-11

Amended at 29 Ok Reg 760, eff 7-1-12

Amended at 34 Ok Reg 498, eff 3-7-17 (emergency)

Amended at 35 Ok Reg 1620, eff 9-17-18

Amended at 38 Ok Reg 2208, eff 9-15-21

Amended at 39 Ok Reg 1709, eff 9-15-22

Amended at 42 Ok Reg, Number 20, effective 9-15-25