Overview
- Applications opened this week in New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts and Minnesota, with agencies moving from pre‑season filings to full processing.
- Pennsylvania’s program starts Dec. 3 with cash grants generally ranging from $200 to $1,000, and officials say the earliest payments should go out in about two weeks.
- New York is accepting HEAP applications offering up to $996 per eligible household, with emergency benefits set to open Jan. 2 if families face fuel runouts or shutoff threats.
- Minnesota received $112.7 million and has begun distributing aid, with officials saying roughly 50,000 approved applicants should see payments within the next week.
- Temporary protections remain in several areas, including early shutoff pauses in Pennsylvania and a PSEG Long Island pause through Dec. 17, but funding is finite and awarded on a first‑come, first‑served basis.