Behind on your electric or gas bill in Maryland? Every program that can help

Today

Do these three things today

In this order. Each one can stop the clock on a shut-off, and together they usually solve the balance.

Call your utility
Ask for a payment arrangement and tell them if anyone in the home is seriously ill or uses medical equipment. That sentence alone can pause the clock. If the forecast is freezing or extreme heat, say so.
Apply for OHEP
One state application opens heating help, electric help and past-due balance help. Apply even if you think you are over the limit; many working families qualify. Apply online through myMDTHINK or at your local OHEP office.
Call us
(443) 222-1221. We will tell you which programs fit your situation and help you get the paperwork through. It is free, and we never sell your information.

State programs

State energy assistance through OHEP

The Office of Home Energy Programs (OHEP) is Maryland's energy assistance office, part of the Department of Human Services. It runs the programs most people mean when they say "LIHEAP." One application is considered for all of them, and you reapply each program year. Grants are paid to your utility or fuel supplier, never to you.

MEAP

Maryland Energy Assistance Program

A grant toward your home heating bill (electric, gas, oil, propane or wood). Paid directly to your fuel supplier or utility.

EUSP

Electric Universal Service Program

Help with your current electric bill, spread across the year. Often pairs with budget billing so monthly payments stay predictable.

Arrearage Retirement

Past-due balance help

A one-time grant toward a large past-due electric balance, which is usually what triggers a shut-off notice in the first place.

USPP

Utility Service Protection Program

Protection from shut-off during the winter heating season (Nov 1 to Mar 31) for MEAP-eligible households that keep up with an agreed budget-billing plan.

How to apply

→Online through Maryland's myMDTHINK portal
→In person or by mail at your local OHEP office (find yours on the DHS OHEP page)
→With us: call (443) 222-1221 and we will walk through it together

Have these ready

✓Photo ID for the applicant
✓Social Security numbers (or proof of application) for everyone in the household
✓Proof of income for the last 30 days for every adult (pay stubs, benefits letters, or a statement if there is no income)
✓Your most recent utility bill, and the shut-off notice if you have one

Income limits are based on household size and change each program year. Apply even if you are unsure; we see working families qualify every week.

Maryland PSC rules

The rules that stop a shut-off

Maryland Public Service Commission rules restrict when a utility can disconnect a home for non-payment. None of these erase the balance. They buy time, and the time is for getting assistance in place.

November 1 to March 31

The winter affidavit rule

Before disconnecting a residential customer from November 1 to March 31, a utility must file an affidavit with the Commission (COMAR 20.31.03.03(B)). It states that the customer was notified in writing and by personal contact of their rights and of financial assistance options, the dates of contact attempts, the reason for termination, whether the household is in an assistance program, and whether anyone in the home is elderly, handicapped, seriously ill or dependent on life-support equipment. Shut-offs still happen in winter, but only after that process, so a notice dated in winter is the moment to ask for a payment arrangement and apply for OHEP.

Freezing forecast

The 72-hour freezing rule

An extreme weather period is 72 hours starting at 6 a.m., three 24-hour segments. In cold weather, if the forecast for any segment is not expected to rise above 32°F, the utility may not shut off service for non-payment during that period. If you get a notice during a cold snap, tell the utility the date and the forecast.

Extreme heat forecast

The 72-hour heat rule

The same 72-hour window applies in hot weather: if the forecast heat index or air temperature for any segment is 95°F or above, no shut-off for non-payment during that period. Maryland has no summer season to match the winter affidavit rule; we are asking the Commission for one.

Serious illness or medical equipment

Medical certification: 30 days

If a licensed physician or other qualified practitioner certifies that losing service would endanger someone's health, your utility must postpone the shut-off for 30 days, and the certification can be renewed. Ask your utility for its medical certification form, have the doctor complete it, and send it back right away. If power runs medical equipment in your home (oxygen, CPAP, dialysis, refrigerated medication), our Critical Medical Needs Program can coordinate the case with OHEP and your utility.

These summaries follow Maryland PSC rules as we understand them; the utility and the Commission apply the details. If a utility will not honor a protection you believe applies, the Commission's consumer affairs office takes complaints, and we can help you file one.

In one picture

When Maryland rules can pause a shut-off

Three different protections, three different triggers. None of them erase the balance; all of them buy time to get help in place.

Your utility

What your utility can do right now

BGE, Pepco, Delmarva Power, Potomac Edison, SMECO, Washington Gas, and the municipal and co-op utilities all have tools that do not require a grant. Ask for them by name:

Payment arrangement. Spread a past-due balance over several months while keeping current service on.
Budget billing. Pay the same amount each month instead of winter and summer spikes.
Hardship and customer assistance programs. Most Maryland utilities run their own bill-credit or matching programs for income-qualified customers.
Weather protections. No shut-off for non-payment during a 72-hour extreme weather period: a forecast that stays at or below 32°F, or a heat index or air temperature of 95°F or above. If you get a notice during a cold snap or heat wave, say so.

Emergency help

When state help is not enough, or not fast enough

Fuel Fund of Maryland

A nonprofit that helps BGE households with energy bills, often after OHEP has been applied. Good for the gap a grant does not cover.

fuelfundmaryland.org →

Pepco: Good Neighbor Energy Fund

Pepco's fund for customers facing a financial hardship who need help paying an energy bill.

pepco.com →

Delmarva Power: hardship assistance

Delmarva Power customers can ask the utility about its hardship and bill assistance programs.

delmarva.com →

Potomac Edison: Dollar Energy Fund

Potomac Edison customers can apply for hardship help with a utility bill through the Dollar Energy Fund.

firstenergycorp.com →

SMECO: Members Helping Members

SMECO's member-funded program for members who need help paying their electric bill.

smeco.coop →

211 Maryland

Dial 2-1-1 for local emergency assistance, churches and community funds, and county programs that change too often to list here.

211md.org →

Your local DSS office

County Departments of Social Services can help with emergency assistance and connect energy help to SNAP, TCA and other benefits you may also qualify for.

Then lower the next bill

Assistance gets you through this month. These shrink the next one.

Once the balance is handled, the same household that qualified for OHEP usually qualifies for the income-qualified community solar discount, where a credit appears on your bill with nothing to install, plus a no-charge home energy check-up. The Savings Finder lists what fits in 60 seconds.

Find my programs

Questions

What people ask us when the notice arrives

Still unsure? Call (443) 222-1221 or request a callback. Free, confidential, and we never sell your information.

My power is scheduled to be shut off this week. What do I do first?

Call your utility today and ask for a payment arrangement. Tell them if anyone in the home is seriously ill or uses medical equipment. Then apply for OHEP and call us at (443) 222-1221. If the forecast is freezing or extreme heat, say so; Maryland PSC rules block shut-offs during a 72-hour extreme weather period (a freezing forecast, or a heat index or temperature of 95 degrees or above).

Does OHEP pay me or the utility?

The utility. OHEP grants go directly to your electric, gas or fuel provider and show up as a credit on your account. You never handle the money.

I work full time. Can I still qualify?

Possibly. OHEP income limits depend on household size and change each program year, and many working families qualify. Apply even if you are unsure; the application is considered for every OHEP program at once.

Can my power be shut off in winter?

It is restricted, not banned. Under Maryland PSC rules, from November 1 to March 31 a utility must file an affidavit with the Commission before it disconnects a residential customer for non-payment, stating that the customer was notified in writing and in person of their rights and of financial assistance options. No shut-off may happen during a 72-hour extreme weather period when the forecast is not expected to rise above 32 degrees. A medical certification can postpone a shut-off for 30 days in any season.

My power is already off. Can these programs turn it back on?

Often, yes. Tell your utility and OHEP that service is already off; a pending OHEP grant plus a payment arrangement is frequently enough to restore it. Call us and we will help you push the paperwork through quickly.

Behind on your electric or gas bill? Here is every program that can help.