79R14109 CLE-F


By:  Chisum                                                     H.C.R. No. 166



HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
	WHEREAS, More than four million Texans are at or below 125 
percent of federal poverty guidelines, but only 173,323, or 4.3 
percent, are served by the federal Low Income Home Energy 
Assistance Program (LIHEAP), according to the Texas Department of 
Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA), which administers the 
program in our state; and
	WHEREAS, Income guidelines for LIHEAP, which provides 
funding for the Weatherization Assistance Program and the 
Comprehensive Energy Assistance Program at TDHCA, allow households 
to have income levels of up to 125 percent of current poverty 
guidelines; however, based upon 2000 census data, Texas has more 
than three million persons who are at or below 100 percent of the 
poverty guidelines; and
	WHEREAS, Home energy assistance is particularly important in 
Texas due to the intense heat, which is a critical health threat to 
the elderly, persons with disabilities, and very young children; in 
fact, the Texas Department of Health reports that in our state more 
individuals die due to heat-related stress than exposure to 
excessive cold; and
	WHEREAS, LIHEAP funds are distributed based on an outdated 
formula that disproportionately favors heating degree days in 
northern states over cooling degree days in southern states and 
does not utilize the most current state-specific population, 
income, and energy price data; and
	WHEREAS, While funding was close to level from federal fiscal 
year 2003 to 2005, the recent increase in energy costs has further 
reduced the already limited number of eligible Texans who can be 
served by LIHEAP; and
	WHEREAS, Current appropriations for LIHEAP do not include 
advance funds, which are vital to ensuring the timely and orderly 
delivery of services during the period after funding for the 
program is authorized by Congress and before Texas is notified of 
its final appropriation level for the program year; now, therefore, 
be it
	RESOLVED, That the 79th Legislature of the State of Texas 
hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United States to 
increase funding to the fully authorized level and include advance 
funds for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program and to 
pursue a more equitable funding allocation formula for the program; 
and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official 
copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to 
the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the 
senate of the United States Congress, and to all the members of the 
Texas delegation to the congress with the request that this 
resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a 
memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.