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pg. 9 INTRODUCTION Program Overview LIHEAP is a block grant program, designed to assist low-income individuals, particularly those with the lowest income who pay a high proportion of household income for home energy, in meeting their immediate energy needs. The U.S. Department of HHS, OCS within the ACF administers the grant. LIHEAP provides help to low-income households targeting the elderly and disabled as insufficient heating and cooling can cause health and safety issues for these homes. LIHEAP is run on the Federal Fiscal Year. Which is from October 1st to September 30th. Purpose of this Manual The purpose of this manual is to provide information, policies, and procedures needed to administer the LIHEAP program in Missouri. This policy and procedures manual does not cover every situation or scenario staff may encounter. The purpose of this manual is to provide administrative assistance and uniform guidance for all LIHEAP users. Legal Basis The legal basis for the administration of LIHEAP and requirements are set forth in the LIHEAP statute, which was amended in 2005 by Subtitle B of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-58) which reauthorized LIHEAP through FY 2007. The LIHEAP statute is codified in the United States Code at: 42 U.S.C. § 8621-8630 (2008). The HHS regulations for the LIHEAP block grant are found in Title 45 (Public Welfare) of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 96 (Block Grants), Subpart H Visit disclaimer page (LIHEAP), cited as 45 C.F.R. § 96. Subparts A- F Visit disclaimer page of the HHS block grant regulations also pertain to LIHEAP. Reauthorization of LIHEAP is currently pending. Administration of LIHEAP was entrusted to DSS under provisions of House Bill 1009 enacted by the 80th General Assembly. Structure LIHEAP has two components:  EA  ECIP Eligibility requirements for LIHEAP include income, household size, available resources, citizenship status, and responsibility for payment of home energy costs.