Utility Assistance for Single Mothers in Minnesota

What has changed for 2026–27?

• New season: The 2025–26 application deadline has passed. The new EAP deadline is May 31, 2027.
• New income table: Minnesota’s FFY27 limits took effect October 1, 2026. The old FFY26 figures below have been replaced with current figures.
• Winter protections active: The Cold Weather Rule began again on October 1, 2026 and runs through April 30, 2027.
• Funding delay: Applications are open, but the state reports that benefit payments are waiting for the new season’s funding. Check for changes before relying on a payment.

Where to start

Start with the bill that could cause the most harm. If you have a notice, use the date on it. An online EAP form by itself does not stop shutoff. You still need to speak to the utility. You can also use ASMOM’s Minnesota emergency assistance guide if you need help with heat, rent, or another crisis.

If shutoff is today or soon

Call the utility and ask for a winter payment plan. Say what you can pay and when. If you cannot agree on a plan, ask how to appeal. Save the notice and call the PUC. Tell your EAP provider about the urgent date. Do not wait for a general application decision.

If you heat with natural gas or electricity

Ask about the Cold Weather Rule and an EAP application. Your utility may also have a monthly bill discount or help with past-due balances. Ask about both.

If you use propane, oil, or wood

Call the fuel dealer before the tank is empty, if possible. Tell the EAP provider what fuel you use and if you have no heat. The Cold Weather Rule does not protect delivered fuels, though a propane dealer must offer budget billing. If the furnace uses electricity, ask your electric company about winter protection too.

If the main problem is water

Call your city or water provider. Ask about payment plans, local funds, and partner charities. Water and sewer bills are not the same as EAP heating help; do not assume an EAP approval pays a water bill.

Help at a glance

Minnesota Energy Assistance Program

Energy Assistance (also called EAP or LIHEAP) is the state’s main low-income energy-bill program. It is open to eligible renters and homeowners, including people who rent with heat costs included in their housing payment. Ask the provider how those costs are checked.

EAP help is based on household size, recent income, and energy costs. The state lists initial benefits averaging about $500, with benefits of up to $1,400. An extra crisis grant of up to $600 may be available for eligible disconnection, reconnection, or emergency fuel needs. A grant is not promised just because you apply. Check EAP emergency benefits and the EAP questions page.

If you own your home and the furnace or heating system has stopped working, ask your provider about heating-system repair or replacement help. That help has its own review steps. If you rent, tell your landlord about a broken furnace and ask the EAP provider for the right help path. EAP payments for energy costs normally go to the energy company or fuel seller, not to you.

Do not use EAP as a plan to cover a phone bill, water bill, garbage bill, or internet bill. Ask about those costs under the separate programs below. If you need food support while you pay off a gas or electric balance, use Minnesota’s SNAP and food guide to check another help path.

Processing warning: On October 13, 2026, the state still reported a funding delay for this heating season. Your local provider can confirm whether payments have begun since that notice. Keep a separate plan for any shutoff date.

2026–27 Energy Assistance income limits

The current income limits are for FFY27 (October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2027). Minnesota mainly uses your household’s most recent month of income. Do not use an older tax return as the only test. The state lists limits for up to 20 people; these are the most common household sizes.

Source: Minnesota’s FFY27 income guidelines. For household sizes 9–20, use the state table instead of guessing. The annual figures are a guide; the monthly income review matters. Tell your provider if your work hours have changed, child support has stopped, or you have no income. Ask which proof they can accept. Do not rule yourself out based on the table alone.

The state uses 50% of state median income for household sizes 1–18 and a different federal measure for households of 19–20. The rules for Weatherization are not identical, so ask about each program.

How to apply and track your case

1. Find the right office. Use the state’s county and Tribal provider list. You can ask about languages, forms, phone help, and where to send proof.
2. Apply. Read the official application instructions and then use the online EAP application or ask your provider for a paper form. The state offers translated paper forms, including Spanish, Hmong, Somali, and Vietnamese. Ask for help if you need another format.
3. Send the right proof. Give details on who lives with you, recent income, housing, energy provider, account number, and any urgent heating problem. Keep a copy of what you send.
4. Flag an emergency right away. Call the provider if you have a disconnect notice, a tank that is almost empty, or a broken heating system. Ask if a crisis review can start before ordinary processing is done.
5. Watch for a notice. The provider may contact you by mail or email to confirm approval or ask for more proof. Reply as soon as you can. Save dates, names, and any confirmation number.

Deadline: The application must be received by May 31, 2027. Starting early leaves more time to fix missing papers. That date is not a promise that money will still be available or that a shutoff will be put on hold.

If you receive cash aid or need job-related help as well, check Minnesota’s TANF assistance guide. It covers a different kind of support and has different rules.

Minnesota shutoff protections

Minnesota’s Cold Weather Rule can protect residential customers from having their main gas or electric heating service cut off from October 1 through April 30. You must ask the company for a payment plan you can keep. If you cannot pay the amount offered, explain your income and essential costs. You can ask to appeal a plan you believe is not fair.

The rule covers many utility types, including city-run utilities and electric co-ops. But the legal tests differ. City-run utilities and co-ops may have stricter income and proof rules. Ask your own provider which rules apply. See the municipal and co-op law and the Attorney General shutoff guide.

Being a renter does not bar you from Cold Weather Rule help. Your main heating service and whose name is on the account matter. If heat is included in rent or the landlord is meant to pay, explain that when you call. Minnesota law has special tenant steps when a landlord fails to pay some utility bills; ask about tenant utility rights and seek legal help rather than assuming you must pay the landlord’s debt.

The Cold Weather Rule does not forgive what you owe. Missed payments may put service at risk. If you cannot make the next payment, contact the utility at once to request a new plan. Keep the date and a copy of any new agreement. If you cannot agree, ask for a written decision and how to dispute it.

Summer safeguard: Minnesota also limits electric shutoffs during extreme heat. It applies on days with a National Weather Service excessive-heat watch, advisory, or warning in the area. The extreme-heat statute covers public, municipal, and co-op electric service. This is not a year-round freeze on unpaid bills.

For a complaint about a regulated utility, call the PUC. For a city or co-op provider, ask about that provider’s appeal steps. The PUC can tell you where to send a complaint. This is general information, not legal advice.

County and Tribal Nation emergency help

If your family faces a heat or power crisis, Minnesota Emergency Assistance may be another path. Families with low incomes can seek help for utility shutoff, eviction, foreclosure, and some other household emergencies. You do not have to receive MFIP to ask about this program.

Apply through MNbenefits or at your county or Tribal Nation human services office. Local offices can set rules about the kinds of emergencies they help with and how often you may receive help. State guidance says that a household generally cannot have received Emergency Assistance in the past 12 months, and some counties require a longer wait. The amount may not be enough to cover the full problem.

For one local example, Hennepin County emergency help lists ways to ask about short-term utility support. It is a local example, not a rule for all Minnesota counties. Ask your own local office whether an emergency utility payment is possible, what documents you need, and how long a review may take.

If child care costs are making a utility payment plan hard to keep, see Minnesota’s child care assistance guide for a separate program that may lower your work or school child care costs. That program does not pay energy bills.

If you are also behind on rent, Minnesota’s housing assistance guide can help you find housing programs. If the debt involves a landlord or a utility dispute, the legal help guide has starting points for local advice.

Utility company bill discounts

After you ask about EAP, ask your utility about its own help programs. Some require EAP approval. They may help with a monthly bill or past-due balance, but only while you meet the rules and make required payments. Availability depends on your company and service address.

Ask your utility: “Does my account qualify for a discount, budget billing, or past-due bill help? Do I need a new EAP approval this year?” Also ask whether an EAP funding delay affects sign-up. Do not use an older program income chart instead of the current state EAP table.

If keeping utilities on means cutting back on food, look at the Minnesota WIC guide for eligible pregnant women, infants, and young children. This can free up money for a payment plan, but it does not pay the utility itself.

Weatherization can lower future bills

Weatherization is not a same-day fix for shutoff. Minnesota’s Weatherization Assistance Program can help eligible renters and homeowners make their homes use less energy. Services may include insulation, sealing drafts, and some furnace or water-heater work.

EAP and Weatherization share an application. If you qualify, ask whether you have been sent for a home energy check. Weatherization uses its own rules and may have a waitlist. Households with children, older adults, people with disabilities, or high energy bills may get priority. If you rent, the provider will explain what the owner must agree to.

If you have no safe heat now, call your energy provider about crisis help. Weatherization takes time. It will not stop a shutoff today.

Water, phone, and internet help

Water and sewer bills

Water aid in Minnesota is mainly local. Call your city’s water billing office first. Ask for a written payment plan and whether a local charity or Community Action partner helps with overdue bills. Do not assume the state’s EAP money can be used to pay water or sewer charges.

In Saint Paul, Saint Paul water assistance lists payment-plan help and a WaterWorks partner path. The city also gives a billing-help number: 651-266-6350. Ask which aid is open before sending papers.

In Hennepin County, CAP-HC water assistance says its 2026 water fund is paused because requests exceeded its money. It lists 211, MNbenefits, and county emergency help as other paths. A paused fund is not the same as a promise of future money; check the page for changes.

Phone and internet bills

Minnesota’s Telephone Assistance Plan (TAP) can lower an eligible landline voice bill by $10 a month. The federal Lifeline program may reduce eligible voice or internet bills. For many qualifying internet plans, the listed Lifeline credit is $9.25 a month; voice-only rates can be different. Ask your provider whether your plan qualifies.

The state also explains added Lifeline help for some Tribal lands and annual eligibility checks. See the Minnesota phone discounts before applying. The federal Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) ended in June 2024. Do not give money to someone who says they can sign you up for a new ACP benefit.

If a phone bill makes it hard to call your care team, Minnesota’s healthcare assistance guide can help you check health coverage. Health benefits do not usually pay a telephone bill.

Documents to gather

You can call for help even if you do not have all the papers. Ask what proof the office accepts. The basic EAP application asks for household names, IDs or accepted alternatives, recent income, housing details, and energy accounts. Other aid programs may ask for more.

Take pictures or make copies before giving originals to anyone. Write down the date you called, the person you spoke to, and the next step they gave you. Never send banking passwords or gift-card payments to someone who says they can speed up an EAP claim.

Phone scripts you can use

If help is denied, delayed, or not enough

For an EAP delay: Check that the provider received your full application. Ask if a letter, proof of income, or account number is missing. If you face shutoff, tell the provider the exact date and ask for a crisis review. A funding delay is not proof that you were denied.

For an EAP denial or amount you dispute: Ask for the written decision and the official appeal steps right away. Check the deadline on your notice. Keep copies of what you sent, who you called, and each reply. If the local provider cannot explain the decision, ask for its formal complaint or appeal route and contact the Department of Commerce.

For a utility shutoff or unfair payment plan: Ask the company to explain the balance and winter plan in writing. If it is a regulated utility, the PUC Consumer Affairs Office can review complaints. If you still disagree with the Consumer Affairs result, the PUC site also explains how to appeal that result. Other utilities may have different dispute steps.

For county Emergency Assistance: Ask for a written notice that says why aid was denied or how much was approved. Read the appeal deadline and instructions on the notice. Ask the county or Tribal Nation for a supervisor or appeal contact. For case-specific legal advice, talk with legal aid.

If the landlord failed to pay a required bill, ask about tenant rights. Do not pay the landlord’s debt without checking your rights. Do not skip court or appeal deadlines while waiting for utility aid.