Notice2026-06804
Proposed Information Collection Activity; Annual Report on Households Assisted by the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
Primary source
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Published
April 9, 2026
Issuing agencies
Health and Human Services DepartmentChildren and Families Administration
Abstract
The Office of Community Services (OCS), Division of Energy Assistance, is requesting to reinstate the Annual Report on Households Assisted by the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) (LIHEAP Household Report; Office of Management and Budget (OMB) #: 0970-0060). The current OMB expiration date is March 31, 2026. Submission of the completed report is one requirement for LIHEAP grant recipients applying for federal LIHEAP block grant funds; the next report is due September 2026. OCS proposes changes to reduce the number of items requested and, therefore, related administrative and reporting burden.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 68 (Thursday, April 9, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 68 (Thursday, April 9, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17972-17973]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-06804]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Administration for Children and Families
[Office of Management and Budget #: 0970-0060]
Proposed Information Collection Activity; Annual Report on
Households Assisted by the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program
(LIHEAP)
AGENCY: Office of Community Services, Administration for Children and
Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
ACTION: Request for public comments.
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SUMMARY: The Office of Community Services (OCS), Division of Energy
Assistance, is requesting to reinstate the Annual Report on Households
Assisted by the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
(LIHEAP Household Report; Office of Management and Budget (OMB) #:
0970-0060). The current OMB expiration date is March 31, 2026.
Submission of the completed report is one requirement for LIHEAP grant
recipients applying for federal LIHEAP block grant funds; the next
report is due September 2026. OCS proposes changes to reduce the number
of items requested and, therefore, related administrative and reporting
burden.
DATES: Comments due June 8, 2026.
ADDRESSES: In compliance with the requirements of the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995, ACF is soliciting public comment on the specific
aspects of the information collection described above. You can obtain
copies of the proposed collection of information and submit comments by
emailing <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#f79e99919894989b9b9294839e9899b7969491d99f9f84d9909881"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="20494e464f434f4c4c454354494f4e604143460e4848530e474f56">[email protected]</span></a>. Identify all requests by the title
of the information collection.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Description: States, the District of Columbia, and the Commonwealth
of Puerto Rico are required by the Low-Income Energy Assistance Act of
1981 (42 U.S.C. 8624, sec. 2610) to report statistics for the previous
federal fiscal year on the following:
<bullet> Assisted and applicant households, by type of LIHEAP
assistance and funding source;
<bullet> Assisted households receiving nominal payments of $50 or
less, by funding source;
<bullet> Assisted households receiving only utility payment
assistance, by funding source; this information will automatically be
transferred to the grant recipient's Performance Data Form;
<bullet> Assisted households, regardless of the type(s) of LIHEAP
assistance or funding source, excluding households that only receive
nominal payments of $50 or less;
<bullet> Assisted households, by type of LIHEAP assistance and
funding source, having at least one vulnerable member who is at least
60 years or older, disabled, or 5 years old or younger;
<bullet> Assisted households, by type of LIHEAP assistance and
funding source, with at least one member age 2 years or under;
<bullet> Assisted households, by type of LIHEAP assistance and
funding source, with at least one member ages 3 years through 5 years;
<bullet> Assisted households, regardless of the type(s) of LIHEAP
assistance or funding source, having at least one member 60 years or
older, disabled, or 5 years old or younger.
Indian tribal grant recipients are required to submit data only on
the number of households, by funding source, receiving heating,
cooling, energy crisis, and/or weatherization benefits. To account for
this difference, tribal grant recipients use the Annual LIHEAP
Household Report.
Short Format
The information is being collected for the department's annual
LIHEAP report to Congress. The data also provides information about the
need for LIHEAP funds. Finally, the data are used in the calculation of
LIHEAP performance measures under the Government Performance and
Results Act of 1993. The data elements will allow for the accuracy of
measuring LIHEAP targeting performance and LIHEAP cost efficiency.
OCS proposes revisions to reduce the administrative burden and
length of form. The proposed revisions include the following:
<bullet> Remove reporting requirements related to sex, race, and
ethnicity, which are not required for statutory LIHEAP reporting or
performance measurement.
<bullet> Remove data elements associated with supplemental LIHEAP
funding provided under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic
Security Act and the American Rescue Plan Act, as these funding sources
have expired and are no longer applicable to ongoing program
operations.
Additionally, OCS proposes to adjust the burden estimates to no
longer account for burden at the household level. This report is an
administrative request for grant recipients, and the LIHEAP statute
gives grant recipients flexibility on how they collect household data.
Overall, these targeted changes reduce respondent burden, improve
clarity of reporting instruments, and ensure the collection remains
focused on current statutory and programmatic requirements.
Respondents: State governments, tribal governments, U.S.
territories, and the District of Columbia.
[[Page 17973]]
Annual Burden Estimates: Burden estimates have been updated to
reflect the changes described above, which include revisions to the
report as well as an adjustment to the burden estimates for
respondents, to reduce burden at the household level. This burden has
been reduced by analyzing fiscal year 2026 LIHEAP Model Plans to
calculate how grant recipients determine eligibility. Based on LIHEAP
Model Plans, 25 of the 52 state grant recipients use categorical
eligibility to determine LIHEAP household eligibility. LIHEAP
categorical eligibility makes a household automatically income-eligible
for energy assistance if any member receives benefits from programs
like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program, or Supplemental Security Income, bypassing the
typical income test, though income is still used to set benefit
amounts. This simplifies and reduces the burden on households. Based on
past average data, those 25 states make up about 55 percent of all
assisted households. To calculate this burden, we used an estimate for
the annual number of LIHEAP household applicants multiplied by an
average of \1/3\ of an hour to provide the data required by the
Household Report. The estimated time per response for the short format,
completed by tribal governments in some small territories, was reduced
from 10 hours to six hours per response. The long format, completed by
all states, District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, was reduced from 67
hours to 41 hours per response.
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Annual number Average hour Annual
Instrument Number of of responses burden per burden
respondents per respondent response hours
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Long Format......................................... 52 1 41 2,132
Short Format........................................ 133 1 6 798
Household Application............................... 6,160,000 1 .3 1,848,000
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Total Annual Burden Hours....................... ............ ............... .............. 1,850,930
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Comments: The Department specifically requests comments on (a)
whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the
proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether
the information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the
agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of
information; (c) the quality, utility, and clarity of the information
to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection
of information on respondents, including through the use of automated
collection techniques or other forms of information technology.
Consideration will be given to comments and suggestions submitted
within 60 days of this publication.
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 8629 and 45 CFR 96.82.
Mary C. Jones,
ACF/OPRE Certifying Officer.
[FR Doc. 2026-06804 Filed 4-8-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4184-80-P
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