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VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT

OF SOCIAL SERVICES ENERGY ASSISTANCE

06/16 VOLUME IX, CHAPTER G, PAGE 2

LDSS must establish a formal procedure describing steps to take in the event of a weekend, holiday or after hours crisis. This procedure must be made known to all Crisis eligible households already known to the LDSS.

d. Community Resource Coordination

Each LDSS must identify what resources are available either in or outside the LDSS that provide assistance for energy emergencies. Other resources are defined as resources from other programs, such as local emergency funds, and other community programs, such as those administered by churches, community action agencies, utility companies, etc. Knowing in advance what resources are, or are not, available will enable the LDSS to assist the applicant when emergencies occur. Crisis Assistance can be provided along with another resource if the combination of those resources will prevent or alleviate the emergency.

3. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

In order to be eligible for Crisis Assistance, a household must meet all of the following criteria.

a. All of the criteria in Chapter B sections 6-8 are applied to the individual or group of individuals who function as one economic unit and who share residential energy.

b. A household that applied for Fuel Assistance may or may not be eligible for Crisis Assistance depending on the living arrangement and the type of Crisis Assistance for which it is applying.

1) Households with heat included in the rent or those living in subsidized housing whose total heating costs are included in their rent (living arrangement codes E) are only eligible for emergency shelter or a space heater; or

2) Households temporarily living in a non-profit emergency shelter and/or homeless (living arrangement code Q) are only eligible for a security deposit.

c. If the household has been determined eligible for Fuel Assistance benefits, income does not need to be verified, unless a significant change (see Chapter C.2) has occurred. If eligibility for Fuel Assistance has not been determined, the agency must attempt to obtain verification of income within the allowable processing time period (see Section 5.a.). In addition to the methods of verifications listed in Chapter C, verifications may include telephone or collateral contacts or self-declaration for income. If self- declaration is used, the applicant must be requested to provide complete verification to confirm eligibility. The agency may recover improper payments from the client, as indicated in Chapter E, if verification proves that the applicant is ineligible.

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