Written by a parent, not a doctor. Nothing here is medical advice.

Childhood Cancer Lantern
Search Saved

Hawaii program

Help with energy bills (Hawaii H-HEAP)

Hawaii’s energy-assistance program helps with electricity or gas bills through agencies on each island.

What it is

Hawaii’s energy-assistance program helps with electricity or gas bills through agencies on each island.

A past-due power bill can become more urgent when your child needs a safe place to recover. H-HEAP has an annual credit and a separate crisis route. Your island agency checks the bill, income and available help.

Eligibility rules
  • The income line is about $80,656 a year for four people; the island agency has the exact table for your household size.
  • The program year runs October 1 through September 30. Electricity or gas used for heating or cooling can qualify.
  • The application asks about household members and the prior month’s income. Your island agency confirms which income counts and the effective table. The 2026 Energy Credit intake ran June 1–30 and is closed. Crisis requests remain a separate year-round route while funds last.
What you get
  • An annual credit toward eligible electricity or gas costs.
  • Crisis help throughout the year, subject to available approvals.
  • A check of any separate utility-rate help available for your account.
What the help covers
  • The June Energy Credit window and the year-round, funding-limited crisis route are different; the program generally provides one Energy Credit or crisis benefit within the same October–September program year. Any separate utility-rate benefit needs confirmation.
  • Your island agency confirms the award amount, processing time, records and remaining crisis funds. Hawaiian Electric confirms any separate Schedule R rate benefit and how it is calculated. Neither a standard statewide award nor a monthly intake quota is promised.
If you decide to apply
  1. Ask your island’s community action agency about the annual credit or crisis route.
  2. Bring the energy bill, any shutoff notice and income records. Explain any equipment your child relies on.

Your island’s community action agency; Hawaii DHS H-HEAP information. · Official page ↗

What happens next
  • Honolulu Community Action Program serves Oahu; Maui Economic Opportunity serves Maui County.
  • Kauai Economic Opportunity and Hawaii County Economic Opportunity Council serve their respective islands.
  • Intake contacts: HCAP Central 808-488-6834; MEO 808-249-2970; Hana 808-248-8282; Molokai 808-553-3216; Lanai 808-565-6665; KEO 808-245-4077; HCEOC 808-731-7009, option 1.
Good to know

One Energy Credit or crisis benefit is generally available per October–September program year. An award depends on funding and eligibility.

Other details
  • A child’s medical needs do not replace the energy program’s income and bill requirements. Hawaiian Electric’s life-support registry is a separate conversation.

Federal background: Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).

Official sources
Ask your social worker

“Could energy assistance help with our bill, and does the crisis route fit? What costs would remain, and could you help us contact the right island agency?”

Why I’m asking: I want to understand whether there is help before a power bill disrupts care at home.

More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules

Who does what

The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.

You

Apply with the bill and proof of income.

Your social worker

The hospital social worker can name the agency for your island.

The care team

Records and letters when the application asks for them.

Who decides
The island community action agency.
Ask the agency
“We have a child in cancer treatment and the power bill is behind. Can we apply for crisis energy help now rather than waiting for the June window?”

How to apply

First step: Call the community action agency for your island and ask for energy crisis help.

  1. Apply for crisis help now if a notice has arrived; do not wait for June.
  2. Ask whether the twelve-month Hawaiian Electric tier waiver comes with approval.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: Apply through your island’s agency: Honolulu Community Action Program, Maui Economic Opportunity, Kauai Economic Opportunity, or Hawaii County Economic Opportunity Council.

What to gather

  • The latest electricity bill
  • proof of household income
  • any shutoff notice

How long: The island agency confirms processing and remaining funds; a fixed monthly quota is not established.

What a yes looks like

A written award and credit to the account; separate rate help depends on utility approval.

What a no looks like, and the next move

Ask which table was used, since the agency page prints two different rules.

Watch out

  • The credit window is only June 1 to 30; crisis help is the year-round route.
  • The administrator’s page contradicts itself on the income rule, so apply rather than ruling yourself out.

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.

What it is worth

An Energy Credit or crisis benefit can help with eligible energy bills. The island agency must confirm the operative income table because published 2026 descriptions conflict.

  • $80,656/year — Published annual income limit, household of 4
  • $41,941/year — Published annual income limit, household of 1
  • $12 — Hawaiian Electric schedule R tier waiver for an approved household

Covers: An annual energy credit toward the electricity or gas bill · Energy crisis intervention year round, with limited monthly approvals

Legal protection: Any separate Hawaiian Electric Schedule R benefit, duration and calculation require utility confirmation.

What it costs the family: Nothing to apply.

The eligibility facts, as published

Income
Agency confirmation required: published 2026 percentage and annual-dollar descriptions conflict. The application asks for prior-month household income; the annual figures must not drive an eligibility promise or exclusion.
Program year
October 1 to September 30
Windows
Energy Credit June 1–30; crisis intake year-round subject to funds. One EC or ECI benefit per October–September program year.
Utilities
electric or gas for heating or cooling

The trap: The administrator’s page prints a dated 2026 annual income table and separately says below 150 per cent of the federal poverty level, and the two do not agree. So the table here is the published one, and no percentage is printed. It is a Maui County administrator’s table, not a certified statewide screen.

Where I read this

← Back to your options