Marketplace All-in-One Federal funds to keep the heat on this winter are stalled
Oct 23, 2025
Henry Epp, a Marketplace reporter, shares insights on the crucial Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and its challenges amid a governmental shutdown. Over 5 million households rely on this support to heat their homes, yet funding is dwindling. Epp highlights the struggles of beneficiaries in Chicago and the administrative delays impacting timely assistance. The conversation also touches on wider economic effects of the shutdown on communities and federal plans to invest in quantum computing.
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Program Faces Political Uncertainty
- LIHEAP helps states, tribes, and territories assist eligible families with heating and cooling costs each year.
- The Trump administration proposed eliminating it, but congressional committees kept it in budget proposals.
Senior's Winter Struggle
- Linda Boteca, 74, survives on Social Security and relies on LIHEAP to heat her Chicago apartment each winter.
- She reports shrinking annual benefits and keeps electric baseboards low, sometimes sitting in a coat to stay warm.
Delay Seasonal Hiring
- Local nonprofits should delay hiring seasonal staff until federal funding clarity arrives due to the shutdown.
- Administrators should tell applicants to be patient and to persist if they face emergency needs.