Updating Standardized State Heating and Cooling Utility Allowance Values

While most Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligibility parameters are set at the federal level, states may establish their own standard utility allowances (SUAs) which are part of the excess shelter expense deduction. The use of SUAs, including heating and cooling SUAs (HCSUAs) for households with heating and cooling expenses, simplifies the application process for both the applicant and the state agency. However, the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) has found some variation between established HCSUA values and household utility expenses in some states.

The primary objectives of this study were to

1. Conduct a review of available data to determine typical costs for internet access to develop a broadband standard utility allowance; and
2. Using the methodology developed in the 2017 FNS study, ​Methods to Standardize State Standard Utility Allowances and more recent data, estimate new fiscal year 2022 HCSUA values for each state.

Key Findings

• The updated values include a broadband component in the HCSUA in lieu of the telephone component.
• The proposed FY 2022 HCSUAs calculated in this study tended to be lower than the actual FY 2021 HCSUAs and some were lower than the respective FY 2014 values from the 2017 SUA study.
• The change from the telephone to a broadband component is the main determinant of the lower HCSUA values from the prior study.
• Eleven states showed lower HCSUA values in FY 2022 from the prior study due to reduced energy expenditures.