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The Iowa Residential Utility Disruption Prevention Program provides eligible households with up to $2,000 towards electric, natural gas and water bills if they are at risk of disconnection due to an inability to pay due to a COVID-19 related loss of income. Payments through the program will be made directly to utility providers and applied to the applicant’s account. View Iowa Residential Utility Disruption Prevention Program FAQs for utility providers here.
THE APPLICATION PERIOD IS NOW CLOSED.
For other recovery resources please visit: IowaHousingRecovery.com.
Electric, natural gas and water utility assistance for unpaid debt on service provided between March 17, 2020 and date of the application.
Not to exceed $2,000 per household.
Applicant must be an Iowa resident with an active residential utility account
Applicant must have an unpaid balance or have previously entered into a payment plan with their utility provider
Renters may apply as long as the utility account is in the applicant’s name
Annual income must be 80% of Median Family Income (MFI), based on county and number of household members.
Must have experienced a COVID-19 loss of income (job loss, reduction in hours, reduction in pay) on or after March 17, 2020.
Your most recent electric, natural gas and/or water utility service bill, showing both your current balance and the past due amount
Pay stub or other appropriate documentation prior to and after loss of income
Basic information regarding your employer and field of employment
If you are on a payment plan with your utility service provider, you will need to provide a copy of your payment plan agreement or be able to provide the payment plan information from your most recent utility bill.
The number of Iowans who have been assisted through the COVID-19 Residential Utility Disruption Prevention program was last updated Dec. 30, 2020.
See the updated numbersOnce an application is approved, a single, one-time payment will be issued directly to an eligible applicant’s utility provider(s). The provider(s) will deposit those funds in the applicant’s account as a credit applied towards the outstanding and current account balance.
The application requires a self-certification of income, which will be reviewed along with supporting documentation by the application review team. Applicants must acknowledge that they are aware that it is a criminal violation under Iowa law to make a false statement in writing for the purpose of procuring assistance from a state agency.
The following documentation is required for proof of loss of income:
Applicants are strongly encouraged to communicate their inability to pay any or all of their utility bill to their utility service provider as soon as they know that to be the case and to notify their utility that they have submitted a Residential Utility Disruption Prevention Program application. Applicants can contact their utility at the customer service number listed on their most recent bill.
In some instances. Only debt that was incurred on or after March 17 is considered eligible debt. If your payment plan also includes debt from the covered period, you may still apply. However, you will be asked additional review questions and need to provide additional documentation. Any approved assistance amount will only cover debt incurred during the covered period (between March 17 and the date of application).
You are still eligible to apply for assistance. Please complete the application and then let your utility know you have applied. IEDA is providing updates to utilities, but receipt and review of those emails cannot be guaranteed. When necessary, IEDA can also provide confirmation to utilities that an applicant has a pending application. Please keep in mind that an application for assistance is not a guarantee your service will not be disconnected, as each utility will make its own decision on how they factor in pending applications to a potential disconnection. IEDA also highly recommends contacting your local community action agency regarding your eligibility for LIHEAP and any additional assistance they might be able to provide. LIHEAP provides eligible applicants with certain protections from disconnection. Please visit https://humanrights.iowa.gov/dcaa/where-apply to find your local community action agency.
Yes. However, this program can only assist with debt that has not been covered by another federal program. If you received assistance from LIHEAP to cover your entire debt, and apply for assistance through the Residential Utility Disruption Prevention program to cover the same debt, your utility provider will not be able to accept the funds and your application will be denied.
If you apply for assistance through LIHEAP or another federal program and the assistance you receive does not cover the entire amount of debt owed, you may be eligible to apply for assistance through this program in order to assist with the remaining debt.
No. Approval for this program does not provide any protection from disconnection during the LIHEAP moratorium period. Applicants must also apply for and qualify for LIHEAP in order to receive moratorium protection. Please contact your local community action agency for more information.
Please be patient. We are working hard to get through applications as fast as we can. The review may take several weeks.
Yes. All costs associated with your water utility bill are eligible for assistance through the Residential Utility Disruption Prevention Program.
Iowa Small Business Relief Grants have been granted state tax exemption by the Iowa legislature. More information will be forthcoming as guidance becomes available in regard to state taxes for other COVID-19 relief programs. Please reference the Internal Revenue Service Guidance for information on federal taxes as they relate to COVID-19 relief funds.
Check the status of your application using the links below.
Application for Residential Utility Disruption Prevention Program
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