(a) Any public or private agency or organization administering an energy assistance program which is funded or administered, in whole or in part, by the state shall take simultaneous applications from applicants for all energy assistance programs and energy conservation loan, grant, audit or service programs which that agency or organization administers and for which an applicant may be eligible and shall provide the applicants with written summaries of all such programs administered by other agencies and organizations and for which an applicant may be eligible. Any public or private agency or organization administering an energy conservation loan, grant, audit or service program or renewable resources loan, grant or service program which is funded or administered, in whole or in part, by the state shall provide applicants with written summaries of all other such programs in the state for which an applicant may be eligible. The Department of Social Services, in consultation with the Department of Economic and Community Development and the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority, shall adopt regulations in accordance with the provisions of chapter 54 to carry out the purposes of this subsection. Such regulations shall, without limitation, set forth requirements for the form and content of the summaries. The Department of Social Services shall be responsible for collecting and disseminating information on all such programs in the state to agencies and organizations administering the programs.

(b) Any state agency which administers or funds an energy assistance program, an energy conservation loan, grant, audit, or service program or a renewable resources loan, grant or service program shall adopt regulations in accordance with chapter 54 for such program in order to protect the due process rights of the applicants. The regulations shall include, but not be limited to, the following, where applicable: (1) Procedures for applications and their disposition, including record-keeping; (2) procedures for the immediate provision of appropriate assistance to eligible applicants who are without or in imminent danger of being without heat, hot water or utilities; (3) standards of assistance, including eligibility and benefits; (4) procedures for assisting persons who are elderly, persons with disabilities, bilingual persons and other persons who are unable to file such applications without assistance; (5) procedures for assisting applicants in obtaining other forms of assistance; (6) procedures for written notice to applicants of the disposition of their applications and the basis for each full or partial denial of assistance; and (7) administrative appeal procedures, including notice to applicants of the availability of such procedures.

(c) The regulations adopted under subsection (a) or (b) of this section shall not require an applicant for assistance to be without fuel or utility service before an agency may accept his application or as a condition of eligibility.

(d) The Public Utilities Regulatory Authority shall assure: (1) That any energy assistance program, energy conservation loan, grant, audit or service program or renewable resources loan, grant or service program concerning residential dwellings, funded or administered by a public service company or municipal utility, shall include provisions to address the needs of persons residing in rental housing and persons of poverty status; and (2) that the audit report on any audit conducted on a dwelling occupied by persons of poverty status, under a conservation audit program funded or administered by a public service company or municipal utility, include a section which excerpts from the audit report the results of those audit procedures required under weatherization or conservation programs available to such persons.

(e) As used in this section, “applicant” means a natural person or a household seeking assistance under any program referred to in this section.

(Oct. Sp. Sess. P.A. 79-6, S. 1, 2; P.A. 80-482, S. 4, 40, 345, 348; P.A. 81-422, S. 1, 2; Nov. Sp. Sess. P.A. 81-9, S. 3, 4; P.A. 86-142; P.A. 88-21, S. 2, 3; P.A. 93-113, S. 1, 3; 93-262, S. 11, 87; P.A. 95-250, S. 1; P.A. 96-211, S. 1, 5, 6; P.A. 11-80, S. 1; P.A. 17-202, S. 50.)

History: P.A. 80-482 made division of public utility control an independent department and deleted reference to abolished department of business regulation; P.A. 81-422 replaced Subsec. (a) and inserted new Subsecs. (b) to (e) and (h), providing for coordination of energy assistance programs and application procedure for such programs, relettered former Subsec. (b) as (f), giving office of policy and management primary responsibility for report where responsibility was previously equally shared, and adding department of housing to list of consulting agencies, and relettered former Subsec. (c) as (g), adding department of housing to agencies whose regulations are reviewed by office of policy and management; Nov. Sp. Sess. P.A. 81-9 deleted requirement for submission of preliminary report by February fifteenth each year and changed date for submission of remaining annual report (formerly “final” report) from November fifteenth to fifteenth business day of July in Subsec. (f); P.A. 86-142 replaced provisions in Subsec. (a) re referrals with provisions re written summaries, extended provisions of Subsecs. (a), (b) and (d) to renewable resource programs, repealed existing Subsec. (e), re deadlines for adoption of regulations, relettered remaining Subsecs. accordingly, and added re progress report, to Subsec. (e)(6); P.A. 88-21 amended Subsec. (e) changing the date of the report’s submission from July first to November first and deleting Subdivs. (4) and (5) which recommended actions by other agencies concerning ways to protect persons of poverty status from loss of electricity, deleted Subsec. (f) requiring the office of policy and management to review regulations of other agencies concerning energy and utility assistance and weatherization programs and relettered former Subsec. (g) accordingly; P.A. 93-113 amended Subsec. (a) by making grammatical and punctuation changes, deleted Subsec. (e) re annual report and relettered former Subsec. (f) as (e), effective June 3, 1993; P.A. 93-262 replaced office of policy and management with department of social services and deleted references to advisory role of human services and income maintenance departments in Subsecs. (a) and (e) and made technical changes, effective July 1, 1993; P.A. 95-250 and P.A. 96-211 replaced Commissioner and Department of Housing with Commissioner and Department of Economic and Community Development; pursuant to P.A. 11-80, “Department of Public Utility Control” was changed editorially by the Revisors to “Public Utilities Regulatory Authority” in Subsecs. (a) and (d), effective July 1, 2011; P.A. 17-202 amended Subsec. (b)(4) by replacing “elderly, handicapped, bilingual” with “persons who are elderly, persons with disabilities, bilingual persons”.