16 Performance Goals and Measures, 2605(b)

16.1 Describe your progress toward meeting the data collection and reporting requirements of the four required LIHEAP (Benefit Targeting Index, Burden Reduction Targeting Index, Restoration of Home Energy Service, and Prevention of Loss of Home Energy Service). Include timeframes and plans for meeting these requirements and what you believe will be accomplished in the coming federal fiscal year. New Jersey has met the data collection and reporting requirements of the four required LIHEAP Performance Measures within the timeframe allowed every year, since it was first required in 2016. New Jersey will continue to meet the complete data collection and reporting requirements when required to do so. Conscious efforts have been made to ensure that families with the lowest income, highest energy cost, taking family size into consideration, receive assistance. Working with utility vendors and the Board of Public Utilities, we have reduced utility shut off by about 85% and have thereby reduced restoration benefits of home energy service also. The Program application includes targeted questions to collect data on energy vendors, fuel type and account information to enable us to gather consumption data directly from utility vendors for fuel type where benefit is applied to enable a detailed analysis of energy burden/usage in each county/zip code. Conscious efforts have been made to ensure that more elderly, disabled and families with children are served when they need it most. Targeted and deliberate outreach is focusing on this group. We have continued to utilize automatic enrolment of clients who receive SNAP and TANF through an agreement with the NJ Department of Human Services for an auto dump of clients' details into our system for automatic screening and issuance of benefits. Through constant education of the population through outreach, and working with Utility vendors, we plan to reduce utility shut off to near zero by targeting those that have received shut off notice once the information is transferred to our System by the utility vendors every week. If any of the above questions require further explanation or clarification that could not be made in the fields provided, attach a document with said explanation here.