This month the Trump administration overseeing the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.
The federally-funded program, created by Congress in 1981, helps low-income families around the country pay for utilities like heat or electricity. It also provides assistance for weatherizing homes.
The staff overhaul has worried county-level providers tasked with providing those federal funds.
"It's really a very confusing time," said Val Martinez, executive director at the Redwood Community Action Agency in Humboldt County. She said the news was shocking because Congress had already funded LIHEAP for 2025.
鈥淲hy the administration would choose to fire everybody who's running a program that's authorized and also fully funded鈥� I don't understand,鈥� Martinez said.
She said the mass firings have created a sense of chaos at a time when more people are struggling to pay for utilities. Bills piled up for some during the pandemic, she said, and now residents face increasing prices for electricity.
鈥淲e're primarily in the PG&E service territory and the bills have really grown a great deal,鈥� Martinez said. 鈥淲e have a lot of panicked seniors and others who are living on fixed income, who are struggling to pay their bills.鈥�
But Martinez said that so far her organization is operating as usual. Most of the over $4 billion that Congress approved for LIHEAP this year has already made it to states.
But as summer approaches, she鈥檚 unsure how the remaining funds can make it to counties without federal staff.
The firings at LIHEAP are part of a larger reduction of around 10,000 employees in the Department of Health and Human Services under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Since 2023, the Redwood Community Action Agency has assisted over 4,000 households in Humboldt with accessing LIHEAP funds, according to Martinez. However, she noted the funding available through her organization is only enough to help less than 7% of the eligible population.
鈥淲e're continuing to help folks. We're doing the best that we can with monies that are available," Martinez said. "That's what our policy has been and will continue to be.鈥�
In a statement, a spokesperson for the California Department of Community Services and Development said, "As of today, we are not experiencing any impacts to LIHEAP鈥檚 ability to provide benefits to low-income households. Our priority remains to ensure all Californians continue to receive uninterrupted access to essential LIHEAP services."
