Heat and Eat (H-EAT)

Overview

Heat and Eat (H-EAT) is a fuel assistance program run by DTA with the Executive Office of Housing and Livable Communities (EOHLC). H-EAT provides a $21 payment to some SNAP households who:

do not pay for heating or cooling, and
do not get Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) payments.

This payment lets the household get the Heating/Cooling Standard Utility Allowance (HCSUA), which can raise their SNAP amount. This payment makes them eligible for the HCSUA for 12 straight months.

H-EAT payment does not count as income for SNAP.

H-EAT Data Exchange Process Between DTA and EOHLC

On the 1st and 15th of every month (or the following business day if the 1st or the 15th falls on a weekend or holiday), DTA sends EOHLC a list of SNAP households that:

are not homeless; or
are not on Bay State Cap.

This includes households that have H-EAT or HEAP benefits that are about to expire.

EOHLC then returns a file that shows which clients got HEAP in the last 12 months.

DTA looks at the clients who did not get HEAP and checks who qualifies for the $21 H-EAT payment. Once DTA determines from EOHLC’s list who qualifies for the H-EAT payment, DTA issues the $21 automatically.

Who is Eligible for H-EAT?

To get H-EAT, a household must:

have one or more elderly or disabled member(s);
not have a pending or closed SNAP case;
not have already verified that they pay for heating, cooling, or A/C fee;
pay shelter costs;
not be Bay State CAP;
not be coded as homeless;
not have maximum SNAP;
not be in temporary housing; and
not be in college housing.

If a household was approved for H-EAT and later stops meeting one or more of the eligibility reasons listed above, they still keep H-EAT for one year from the date they were approved.

Important: Clients who get H-EAT may see a gap between when their case is approved and when their SNAP benefits are recalculated including the HCSUA. Because of this, the first SNAP amount may be different from the ongoing amount.

The timing depends on:

when the client applied,
when the SNAP case was approved,
when DTA gets the file from EOHLC, and
the household’s regular monthly issuance date.

Federal law does not allow DTA to give a related benefit for the difference in SNAP benefits due to the approval of H-EAT.

How are H-EAT Benefits Recorded in BEACON?

The H-EAT payment date is saved as the H-EAT start date on the Standard Utility Allowance Tracking page in BEACON. BEACON then sets the H-EAT end date 12 months after that start date.

Once the H-EAT date is set, the household automatically gets the HCSUA. BEACON will enter the batch narrative: “H-EAT benefits authorized” or “H-EAT benefits reauthorized.”

The H-EAT dates are set on the Standard Utility Allowance page for all household members who are 18 or older.

Verification Record for H-EAT Households

For households that receive the $21 H-EAT payment, BEACON will:

create an item in the Verification tab: Standard Utility Allowance (Utility Costs: Heating/Cooling);
Mark it as verified with the following document of evidence: “H-EAT program verified by EOHLC Match.”
Enter the following batch narrative: “H-EAT program benefits authorized”

How are H-EAT Benefits Paid?

The $21 H-EAT payment is added as cash to the client’s EBT account. If the client gets cash assistance by direct deposit, the $21 goes to their bank account instead. The payment shows in Benefit History under SNAP and is labeled “HEAP.”

What if the H-EAT Recipient Moves?

If a H-EAT recipient moves into another SNAP household, their new household will get the HCSUA based on their receipt of H-EAT if the household contains an elderly or disabled member.
The H-EAT recipient’s previous household will no longer be eligible for the HCSUA unless it includes another elderly or disabled member. If not, this household cannot get the HCSUA unless they verify that they have separate heating or cooling costs.

Note: This guidance related to a H-EAT recipient changing their address also applies to HEAP recipients.

Example: Ingrid (she/her, age 70) receives SNAP with her daughter Sally (she/her, age 25). The household was approved for H-EAT on March 1. On April 1, Ingrid’s brother David (he/him, age 72) moves in and is added to Sally’s SNAP case. But then on May 5, Ingrid moves out. Ingrid joins a new household, which was only credited with the phone SUA.

Sally’s SNAP household remains eligible for the HCSUA because her household still includes an elderly individual, David. The household that Ingrid joined now qualifies for the HCSUA because Ingrid is an elderly individual that received H-EAT within the past 12 months.

Expungement of H-EAT Benefits

An unspent H-EAT payment will be permanently expunged from a client’s EBT account after one year.