1. (a) Crisis assistance can be provided under the following conditions:

   1. (1) A Life Threatening Crisis exists, as defined in §6.301 of this Subchapter;
   2. (2) Disconnection notice - a utility disconnection notice may constitute a Household Crisis. Assistance provided to Households based on a utility disconnection notice is limited to two (2) payments per year. Weather criterion is not required to provide assistance due to a disconnection notice. The notice of disconnection must have been provided to the Subrecipient within the effective contract term and the notice of disconnection must have been issued within no more than 60 days from receipt by the Subrecipient.; or,
   3. (3) Extreme Weather Conditions exist, as defined in §6.301 of this Subchapter.

2. (b) Benefit Level for Crisis Assistance.

   1. (1) Crisis assistance payments cannot exceed the minimum amount needed to resolve the crisis; e.g. when a shut-off notice requires a certain amount to be paid to avoid disconnection and the same notice indicates that there are balances due other than the required amount. Crisis assistance payments that are less than the amount needed to resolve the crisis may only be made when other funds or options are available to resolve the Household's remaining crisis need and are documented in the customer file.
   2. (2) Crisis assistance for one Household cannot exceed the maximum allowable benefit level in one Program Year as defined in §6.309 of this Subchapter relating to Types of Assistance and Benefit Levels. If a Household's crisis assistance needs exceed that maximum allowable benefit, Subrecipient may pay up to the Household crisis assistance limit only if the remaining amount of Household need can be paid from other funds. If the Household's crisis requires more than the Household limit to resolve and no other funds are available, the crisis exceeds the scope of this component.
   3. (3) Payments may not exceed Household's actual utility bill.
   4. (4) Crisis funds, whether for utility payment assistance, disconnection notice, life threatening crisis, temporary shelter, emergency fuel deliveries, assistance related to natural disasters shall be considered part of the total maximum Household allowable assistance.
   5. (5) Service and repair or purchase of heating and or cooling units for up to $3,000 will not be counted towards the total maximum Household allowable assistance under the utility assistance and crisis components.

3. (c) Where necessary to prevent undue hardships from a qualified crisis, Subrecipients may provide:

   1. (1) Payment of utility bill(s) during the month(s) when Extreme Weather Conditions exist, as defined in §6.301 of this Subchapter.
   2. (2) Temporary shelter not to exceed the annual Household expenditure limit for the duration of the contract period in the limited instances that supply of power to the dwelling is disrupted--causing temporary evacuation;
   3. (3) Emergency deliveries of fuel up to 250 gallons per crisis per Household, at the prevailing price. This benefit may include coverage for tank pressure testing;
   4. (4) For Vulnerable Population Households regardless of weather conditions, service and repair of existing heating and cooling units when the Household has an inoperable heating or cooling system when the county is experiencing Extreme Weather Conditions. If any component of the central system cannot be repaired using parts, the Subrecipient can replace the component in order to repair the central system. Documentation of service/repair and related warranty must be included in the customer file. Costs are not to exceed $3,000 during the Contract period.
   5. (5) For Vulnerable Population Households regardless of weather conditions, service and repair or purchase of portable air conditioning/evaporative coolers and heating units (portable electric heaters are allowable only as a last resort), when the Household has an inoperable or there is a nonexistent heating or cooling system.. If any component of the central system cannot be repaired using parts, the Subrecipient can replace the component in order to repair the central system. Any service or repair of air conditioning or heating units must comply with the 2015 International Residential Code ("IRC") to ensure proper installation. Documentation of service/repair and related warranty must be included in the customer file. Costs are not to exceed $3,000 during the Contract period.
   6. (6) When a Household's crisis meets the definition of Life Threatening Crisis and the Household has a utility disconnection notice or is low on fuel, regardless of whether the county is experiencing Extreme Weather Conditions, utility or fuel assistance can be provided.

4. (d) When portable heating/cooling units are purchased and/or repaired, the following requirements must be met:

   1. (1) Purchase of more than two portable heating/cooling units per Household requires prior written approval from the Department;
   2. (2) Purchase of portable heating/cooling units which require performance of electrical work for proper installation requires prior written approval from the Department;
   3. (3) Replacement of central systems and combustion heating units is not an approved use of crisis funds; and
   4. (4) Portable heating/cooling units must be Energy Star®. In cases where the type of unit is not rated by Energy Star®, or if Energy Star® units are not available due to supply shortages, Subrecipient may purchase the highest rated unit available.

5. (e) When natural disasters result in energy supply shortages or other energy-related emergencies, LIHEAP will allow home energy related expenditures for:

   1. (1) Costs to temporarily shelter or house individuals in hotels, apartments or other living situations in which homes have been destroyed or damaged, i.e., placing people in settings to preserve health and safety and to move them away from the crisis situation;
   2. (2) Costs for transportation (such as cars, shuttles, buses) to move individuals away from the crisis area to shelters, when health and safety is endangered by loss of access to heating or cooling;
   3. (3) Utility reconnection costs;
   4. (4) Blankets, as tangible benefits to keep individuals warm;
   5. (5) Crisis payments for utilities and utility deposits; and
   6. (6) Purchase of fans, air conditioners and generators. The number, type, size and cost of these items may not exceed the minimum needed to resolve the crisis.
6. (f) Time Limits for Assistance--Subrecipients shall ensure that for customers who have already lost service or are in immediate danger of losing service, some form of assistance to resolve the crisis shall be provided within a 48-hour time limit (18 hours in life-threatening situations). The time limit commences upon completion of the application process. The application process is considered to be complete when an agency representative accepts an application and completes the eligibility process.
7. (g) Subrecipients must maintain written documentation in customer files showing crises resolved within appropriate timeframes. Subrecipients must maintain documentation in customer files showing that a utility bill used as evidence of a crisis was received by the Subrecipient during the effective contract term. The Department may disallow improperly documented expenditures.

Source Note:The provisions of this §6.310 adopted to be effective December 4, 2016, 41 TexReg 9270.