Colorado LIHEAP income limits.

Colorado LIHEAP income limits by household size

Colorado uses 60% of state median income for every household size. FFY 2026 limits are the state standard applied to the ACF tables that were mandatory for October 2025 to September 2026.

No FFY 2027 column: this state had not posted one in the sources read, and the state median income estimates it needs were not found.

When Colorado LIHEAP is open

• LEAP season: November 1 to April 30, per the state's LEAP page.
• Early applications: The state plan lets local agencies take applications from elderly households, households with a disabled member and households with young children before November 1, and mails applications and return envelopes to last year's recipients before the season.
• Furnace repair: A year-round furnace repair and replacement program is part of heating assistance and runs until funding is exhausted.

Dates come from the state's FFY 2026 plan as compiled by the LIHEAP Clearinghouse. The Clearinghouse notes that actual application periods depend on available funding. OCS announced the first FY 2027 LIHEAP block grant funding release on October 9, 2026 (about $3.6 billion, 90% of funds under the continuing resolution signed September 2, 2026), so states are receiving money now, but each state still sets its own opening date and rules.

What Colorado LIHEAP pays

The state's page says LEAP usually pays between $200 and $1,000, and the plan lists the same minimum and maximum. LEAP is meant to pay part of your heating costs, not the whole bill.

The plan defines a crisis as service that has been discontinued or threatened with disconnection, being out of fuel or about to run out, or being responsible for heat included in rent after receiving an eviction notice. The maximum winter crisis payment is $1,000.

Who gets priority and who is excluded

Most non-emergency applications are processed within 30 days, according to the state's page, and no interview is needed to apply.

Heat included in your rent can still qualify you, but not if you live in subsidized housing where heat is included in the rent. Subsidized households that pay heat directly to a vendor, or pay a surcharge to the landlord, are treated as exposed to rising heat costs and can qualify.

How to apply and what to have ready

Where to apply: Colorado LEAP page (apply online through Colorado PEAK, by phone at 1-866-432-8435, or on paper at your county office).

• An answer to every question on the application, with Social Security numbers and birth dates for everyone in the household.
• Proof of household income.
• Your latest heating bill, or your most recent rent receipt if heat is included in your rent.
• Proof of lawful presence for household members born outside the country, when required.
• Self-employment income and expense information, if you have it.

You can apply even if you receive Medicare, SSI, Colorado Works/TANF, food assistance, Old Age Pension or Aid to the Needy Disabled; the state says LEAP does not affect those benefits.

The agency that runs the program is the Colorado Department of Human Services (Low-income Energy Assistance Program, LEAP).

LIHEAP pages for other states

Minnesota Indiana Maryland Tennessee Washington Connecticut Iowa Kentucky Oregon Kansas Nebraska