1107 Availability of the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program; proposed State plan and public hearing schedule

DEPARTMENT OF
PUBLIC WELFARE

Availability of the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program; Proposed State Plan and Public Hearing Schedule

[28 Pa.B. 3334]

   The Department of Public Welfare is making available for public review and comment the Fiscal Year (FY) 1998-99 Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) proposed State Plan. Comments on this document and testimony received at public hearings scheduled for August will be used to formulate the Department's final State Plan for using Federal funds in the FY 1998-99 LIHEAP Program.

   The Department has sent advance copies of the proposed State Plan to the LIHEAP Advisory Committee. In addition, copies have been sent to fuel associations, legal service agencies and Area Agencies on Aging for distribution to their members or constituents. Other persons who want copies can obtain them after July 31, 1998, either by contacting their local county assistance office or by calling Karen Kirk at [phone].

   The Department will hold three public hearings throughout the Commonwealth to allow testimony on the proposed State Plan and fulfill the Federal mandate for public input into the planning process. This mandate appears in Title XXVI (The Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Act of 1981) (Pub. L. 97-35, 42 U.S.C.A. §§ 8621 et. seq.) as amended by the Human Services Reauthorization Act of 1984 (Pub. L. 98-558), the Human Services Reauthorization Act of 1986 (Pub. L. 99-425), the Augustus F. Hawkins Human Services Reauthorization Act of 1990 (Pub. L. 101-501), the National Institutes of Health Revitalization Act of 1993 (Pub. L. 103-43), and the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Amendments of 1994 (Pub. L. 103-252).

   Public Hearing Schedule:

   August 18, 1998, 10 a.m.--12 noon, County Courthouse, Gold Room, 436 Grant Street, Pittsburgh, PA.

   August 20, 1998, 10 a.m.--1 p.m., Philadelphia State Office Building, Room 101-B, 1st Floor, 1400 Spring Garden Street, Philadelphia, PA.

   August 24, 1998, 10 a.m.--12 noon, Room 812, Health and Welfare Building, Forster Street, Harrisburg, PA.

   Persons who wish to testify on the proposed State Plan at a public hearing should arrange a time by telephoning [phone] before August 7, 1998. Persons from outside the Harrisburg area should call toll-free [phone] or send a written request, including their telephone number, to Esther Witmer, LIHEAP Department of Public Welfare, DPW Complex 2, Willow Oak Building, Room 224, Harrisburg, PA 17105.

   Persons with a disability may use the AT&T Relay Service by calling [phone] (TDD users) or [phone] (Voice users).

FEATHER O. HOUSTOUN,   
Secretary

[Pa.B. Doc. No. 98-1107. Filed for public inspection July 10, 1998, 9:00 a.m.]