LIHEAP Staffing Support Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The LIHEAP Staffing Support Act adds staffing rules to the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Act. HHS must employ at least 20 staff to carry out LIHEAP. No more than 40 percent of LIHEAP staff may be contractors, except during specified emergencies. When an emergency is determined under listed LIHEAP emergency provisions, HHS must employ at least 30 LIHEAP staff beginning no later than 45 days after the emergency determination and ending no earlier than 180 days after the determination. During that emergency staffing period, HHS may hire contractors above the normal 40 percent cap to satisfy the 30-staff minimum. The bill is designed to make LIHEAP administration less thinly staffed during normal operations and more surge-capable during energy, weather, supply, or household-crisis emergencies.
Who Benefits and How
LIHEAP applicants benefit if minimum staffing improves benefit processing and emergency response. State LIHEAP offices benefit from stronger federal staffing support and guidance capacity. Low-income households facing energy emergencies benefit from a required staffing surge during emergencies. Federal LIHEAP employees benefit from a statutory floor for government staffing rather than contractor-heavy administration.
Who Bears the Burden and How
HHS LIHEAP administrators must maintain at least 20 staff and surge to 30 during specified emergencies. HHS workforce planners must keep contractors below 40 percent outside emergency exceptions. Contractors may lose routine staffing share under the 40 percent cap but gain emergency surge opportunities. Federal taxpayers bear costs for minimum staffing and emergency surge capacity.
Key Provisions
- Requires HHS to employ at least 20 LIHEAP staff.
- Limits contractors to no more than 40 percent of LIHEAP staff outside emergency exceptions.
- Requires at least 30 LIHEAP staff during specified emergencies.
- Requires emergency staffing to begin within 45 days and last at least 180 days.
- Allows contractors above the cap to meet emergency staffing requirements.
Evidence Chain:
This summary is generated from the full bill text using AI analysis. Expand "Detailed Analysis" below for identified beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
At a Glance
What This Bill Does
Requires HHS to employ at least 20 staff for LIHEAP administration, limits contractors to no more than 40 percent of LIHEAP staff except during specified emergencies, and requires at least 30 LIHEAP staff beginning within 45 days of an emergency determination and lasting at least 180 days, with contractors allowed above the cap to meet emergency staffing.
Key Policy Areas
Energy Assistance, HHS, Public Benefits
Primary Purpose
Requires HHS to employ at least 20 staff for LIHEAP administration, limits contractors to no more than 40 percent of LIHEAP staff except during specified emergencies, and requires at least 30 LIHEAP staff beginning within 45 days of an emergency determination and lasting at least 180 days, with contractors allowed above the cap to meet emergency staffing.
Policy Domains
Resolution provisions
Identified Gains
- LIHEAP applicants
- State LIHEAP offices
- Low-income households
- Federal LIHEAP employees
Identified Costs
- HHS LIHEAP administrators
- HHS workforce planners
- Contractors
- Federal taxpayers
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
In CommitteeMr. Gottheimer (for himself and Mr. Lawler) introduced the following …
Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in …
Introduced in House
Stakeholder Effects
cui bono?How this legislation distributes effects. Mention counts reflect frequency, not effect magnitude.
HHS LIHEAP administrators, HHS workforce planners
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology