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Title 7: SNAP Page 56 Iowa Department of Health and Human Services Employees’ Manual Chapter E: Income Deductions Revised September 27, 2024 Standard Utility Allowances A heating expense is the cost of fuel from the primary heating source the household normally uses. The cost of electricity used to operate a furnace fan is not a heating expense. When the household uses wood as its primary heating source, consider it a heating expense only if the household has to pay a third party for the wood. Do not allow a deduction for the costs of equipment to cut the wood. Air conditioning costs are the cost for operating either a central air conditioning system or a room air conditioner. If the household’s rent includes utility expenses and the household gets LIHEAP, allow the full amount of the rent in addition to the big standard. The following sections explain how to determine:  Receipt of LIHEAP  Reimbursement from other energy assistance programs Determining Receipt of LIHEAP Legal reference: 7 CFR 273.9(d)(6) LIHEAP payments for each year are issued between October and the following September. If the household is certified before October, and the household got a LIHEAP payment at its current address for the year, allow the household the heating or air conditioning standard because the household received LIHEAP. If the household is certified after October and before it receives LIHEAP for the new year, determine if the household got LIHEAP in the previous October- through-September period. If the household did, and if it plans to apply for LIHEAP at the same address again this year, consider it as receiving LIHEAP, and allow the heating or air conditioning standard. If the household moved, previously received LIHEAP at its old address, and anticipates receiving LIHEAP at its new address, allow the standard allowance based on anticipated receipt of LIHEAP. Reimbursements from Other Energy Assistance Programs Legal reference: 7 CFR 273.9(d)(6) Energy assistance payments cover the period October through September of each year. If the household received reimbursements from energy assistance programs other than LIHEAP: 1. Decide if the household’s utility costs were more than the reimbursement. 2. Divide the payment received (October through September) by 12.