By Angela Hatton
Mayfield, KY – Those seeking help with their heating bills this fall will encounter some new rules. Kentucky's Low-Income-Home-Energy-Assistance-Program now requires applicants to provide physical copies of social security cards for all members in the household and income statements for everyone over the age of 18. West Kentucky Allied Services LIHEAP Director Tony Dowdy says the new rules come after a U. S. Attorney General's study that looked at nine states.
"There was definite issues of fraud and abuse and it was astronomical, the amount of dollars where fraud was perpetrated."
Dowdy says last year, over 4,300 families in the Purchase region sought the LIHEAP subsidy. He expects the loss of some manufacturing jobs in the area will draw more out this year. LIHEAP starts Monday and runs through December 10. A second round of assistance begins in January.