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EAP Policy Manual FFY24 Chapter 8 Benefit Payments and Refunds Page 2 using eHEAT, and the Minnesota Management & Budget (MMB) makes the payments using electronic fund transfers (EFT) or warrants. Service Providers authorize payment in eHEAT using local procedures and best practices to ensure payment information is correct. Crisis payments should be processed or made ‘Payable’ within 7 calendar days as indicated in the Distributing Crisis Benefits section of Chapter 5 - Crisis to ensure Crisis benefits are applied timely to reduce additional household risks (e.g., additional fees assigned to the household or shutoff). Once the payment is authorized, the payment status in eHEAT is “payable.” Payment information can be edited when the payment status is “payable.” eHEAT sends payment information to MMB using a batch process run at night. During batch processing, the payment status becomes “in progress.” Edits cannot be made when the payment status is “in progress.” MMB takes one day to process EFTs. The next night (one day after the batch file), eHEAT and MMB run a batch file to: • Send EFTs to energy vendors’ banks. • Produce warrant checks to energy vendors unable to receive EFTs. • Produce warrant checks to households receiving direct payment. • Provide payment information to eHEAT, e.g., date, activity number, and warrant number. • Change the household’s payment status (in eHEAT) to “paid.” Voiding Payments Service Providers use ‘Make Void’ to void a payment when a household’s benefit needs to be recalculated to a lower amount or if the benefit should not be paid at all (e.g., it is a household of one and that person died). ‘Make Void’ is on the ‘Payment Services’ tab in eHEAT. Designation of Energy Vendors Households must designate their heating and electric vendors on their applications. All energy vendors designated by a household have access in eHEAT to the household’s eligibility and payment status. This designation also makes it possible to authorize a Primary Heat or Crisis payment to that energy vendor on behalf of that household. Primary Heat Payments to Energy Vendors By default, eHEAT will divide a household’s Primary Heat benefit between their main heating vendor and their electric vendor. If households have specific preferences about how their