Page 101

VIRGINIA DEPARTMENT

OF SOCIAL SERVICES ENERGY ASSISTANCE

10/17 VOLUME IX, CHAPTER G, PAGE 3

d. The household must have an energy emergency such as no heat or an imminent utility cutoff or no single source of operable or safe heating equipment. A household whose only source of heat is a fireplace or a portable space heater is considered to be in a no heat situation.

e. Other community resources, as verified by the LDSS, cannot meet the need. If other community resources are available and can be used within the allowable processing time period, they must be used either in conjunction with or prior to providing assistance. If Crisis Assistance is provided in conjunction with other community services, the name of the resource provider and the amount of the resource must be documented in the case record and entered into the system. The case record must also contain documentation of client payment or arrangements with the vendor.

If no other resources are available or can be used within the allowable processing period, assistance can be provided if the applicant meets all other criteria.

f. Applicants must reside in the locality in which application is made.

g. Assistance available through the program must prevent or alleviate the emergency.

4. APPLICATIONS/REAPPLICATIONS

Applicants must complete the Crisis Assistance application. Forms and instructions are available at http://spark.dss.virginia.gov/divisions/bp/ea/. More than one type of assistance may be requested at the same time on the same application. Subsequent requests for assistance will require a new application. The applicant should select a vendor from the approved vendor list for the LDSS. (Note: For households participating in the Address Confidentiality Program [ACP] who request equipment that requires the customer to select a vendor, the LDSS will contact their Regional Consultant so a manual check can be generated by the Home Office.) All other guidance on taking applications is indicated in Chapter A, Section 9.

Applications may be received by mail, in person, by fax, by telephone (through the Enterprise Customer Service Center), or online (in CommonHelp). A signature on the application is required. A face-to-face interview is not required.

Only one member of a household may make an application for assistance. This application is assumed to request assistance for all persons residing in the household.

TRANSMITTAL # 17-1