More than 1.1 million New York households that already get SNAP or Public Assistance will receive heating payments this winter without filing a thing. The state’s Home Energy Assistance Program, known as HEAP, opens to everyone else on November 2. Emergency aid for households about to run out of fuel opens January 4, 2027.
The announcement came on October 16 from Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office. It carries bigger base benefits for homes that buy delivered fuel, in a year when heating oil and kerosene cost far more than they did a year ago.
The automatic group: SNAP and Public Assistance households
Most HEAP money goes out without an application. The state’s Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, or OTDA, prepares the payments in advance for households enrolled in programs such as SNAP or Public Assistance, according to the governor’s announcement. The office puts that group at more than 1.1 million low- and middle-income households and older adults.
Fingerlakes1.com, which carried the same announcement, reports that the state expects to issue those payments. Neither report says how the payment is delivered or when each household will see it.
The question for a New York household is whether it sits in the automatic group. A household on SNAP or Public Assistance does. Anyone else, including older homeowners who are not on either program, has to apply, and the window opens November 2.
Retirement deadlines, in your inbox: Miss an enrollment or claim deadline and the money can be gone. The Retirement Money Brief keeps you ahead of the ones that matter, every weekday.
Get the Retirement Money Brief →
We may earn a commission from links on this page.
Everyone else applies starting November 2
Public Service Commission Chair Rory M. Christian and several state senators and Assembly members also issued statements encouraging eligible households to apply.
Households outside the automatic group can apply at their local department of social services, online at ny.gov/HEAP, by mail or in person. State officials expect hundreds of thousands of additional applicants. Benefits are first-come, first-served, and an eligible household can receive one regular benefit per season.
OTDA Commissioner Barbara C. Guinn urged eligible households to apply as soon as possible. Older adults who need help with the process can contact their local office for the aging or the NY Connects helpline at 1-800-342-9871, and Acting Office for the Aging Director Greg Olsen said, “No older adult should have to worry about staying warm during the winter.”
The income guideline the state gave as an example: a family of four can have up to $82,230 a year in gross income, or $6,852 a month, and still qualify.
What the benefit is worth
Amounts depend on income, household size, heating source and whether a vulnerable person lives in the home. Households that have fuel delivered get the biggest base benefit. It is $990 for oil, kerosene or propane, up $90, and $700 for wood, pellets or coal, up $65.
Households that pay directly for heat can get an extra $61 if income is at or below 130 percent of the federal poverty level. They can get another $35 if someone in the home is 60 or older, under 6 or permanently disabled. The Fingerlakes1.com report calls those the maximum amounts, not guaranteed payments.
The state points to prices as the reason for the boost: heating oil is up 67 percent and kerosene up 50 percent from a year ago, the governor’s announcement says. The base benefits are the state’s answer to that jump, and they rise with income, household size and heating source.
Emergency HEAP opens January 4
Emergency HEAP is a separate benefit for households that risk running out of fuel or having utilities shut off. Applications open January 4, 2027, and an eligible household that already received its regular benefit may still qualify for an Emergency benefit. Like the regular benefit, it is first-come, first-served, so a household close to an empty tank or a shutoff notice should not wait for late winter to apply.
Homeowners can also ask for help with the heating system itself. The state lists a Heating Equipment Clean and Tune benefit and a Heating Equipment Repair and Replacement program for homeowners whose equipment does not work. Both run through the local department of social services.
1.57 million benefits last season, and where they went
About 1.5 million HEAP benefits were issued last season, and the state expects a similar number this winter. The regional count totaled 1,574,316, and New York City alone accounted for 927,691 of them, nearly three in five.
The rest were spread across the state: 132,462 in Western New York, 95,898 in the Hudson Valley, 84,288 in the Finger Lakes and 71,406 on Long Island. The Capital District had 64,914, Central New York 54,886, the Southern Tier 54,480, the Mohawk Valley 47,952 and the North Country 40,339.
The free, official route for questions is OTDA, whose HEAP page lists an OTDA hotline at 1-800-342-3009 and points callers to their local district contact. The automatic payment answers the question for SNAP and Public Assistance households, and the November 2 date answers it for everyone else.
Will your New York household get the heating payment on its own?
A household that assumes the automatic payment will reach it, and is not enrolled in SNAP or Public Assistance, can miss the November 2 start of a first-come, first-served program.
The Senior Property Tax & Home-Cost Relief Kit covers heating, cooling and home-repair help in one place, and includes an application log and renewal calendar so each application and its deadline is written down. Its property-tax section lists the five kinds of property-tax relief.
Find heating and home-repair help in the senior home-cost relief kit →
More Financial Reading
- 15 Places to Find Your Share of the $4.25 Billion States Give Back
- 21 Ways to Stretch a $2,087 Social Security Check
- 15 Steps to Stop the Scams That Took $7.7 Billion From Seniors
This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
Warren Cohen is a finance writer based in Phoenix, Arizona, covering personal finance topics including credit, banking, and beginner investing. He earned his degree in business administration from Arizona State University and began his career working in consumer finance, where he gained direct experience with lending and credit systems. He now writes for personal finance websites and fintech platforms, focusing on clear, practical content that helps readers make informed financial decisions.
