Texas Utility Assistance: Bill Help, Payment Plans, and Shutoff Protections

How Texas utility assistance works

Most help with Texas utility bills does not come from one office. It comes from three places that work side by side:

• Bill payment programs such as CEAP, funded by the federal government and run by local agencies, plus charity funds found through 211.
• Consumer protection rules from the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC), which tell many electric providers when they must offer payment plans and when they cannot disconnect.
• Programs that lower your costs over time, such as weatherization and the Lifeline phone discount.

The best results usually come from using all three at once: apply for CEAP, ask your provider for a payment plan while you wait, and ask the agency about weatherization so next season’s bills are smaller.

CEAP bill payment help

The Comprehensive Energy Assistance Program is how Texas delivers the federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) contracts with community action agencies, local governments, and nonprofits, and each covers certain counties. You apply with the agency for your county, not with TDHCA directly. Find it through TDHCA’s Help for Texans page, the national LIHEAP office finder, or 211.

Who qualifies. Household income must be at or below 150% of the federal poverty guidelines. For 2026 that is $23,940 a year for one person, plus $8,520 for each additional person. You must be responsible for home energy costs. Priority goes to households with someone 60 or older, a person with a disability, a child 5 or younger, and households that spend a large share of income on energy.

What it pays. CEAP sends payments directly to your electric, natural gas, or propane company. Many agencies spread help over several months. Some also repair or replace unsafe heating and cooling units for vulnerable households. Benefit amounts depend on your income, household size, energy costs, and how much funding the agency has left, so ask what it can offer this year.

Funding is limited, and some agencies pause applications when money runs low. Apply as soon as you fall behind rather than waiting for a disconnection date. Our full guide to the Texas Comprehensive Energy Assistance Program covers each step.

Crisis help when a shutoff is close

If you have a disconnection notice, have already been cut off, or are out of propane, tell the CEAP agency it is a crisis. Under federal LIHEAP rules, agencies must provide some form of help within 48 hours of a completed crisis application, or within 18 hours when the situation is life-threatening, such as no heat for an older adult during a freeze.

Crisis help might be a payment, a pledge to the utility that holds off the shutoff, or a referral to a shelter or cooling center. While you wait, call your provider, explain that you have applied, and ask whether it will hold the account. Many providers also partner with local agencies on their own bill-help funds; ask your provider and 211 which ones are open.

Payment plans from your electric provider

In the parts of Texas where you choose your electric company, PUC rule 16 TAC 25.480 sets out when retail electric providers must offer a deferred payment plan, which lets you pay a past-due balance in installments while keeping up with new bills.

• Providers must offer a plan on request for bills that come due during an extreme weather emergency.
• For bills due in the summer months of July, August, and September, and in some winter months, many customers who say they cannot pay qualify, including customers with critical care or chronic condition status. There are exceptions, such as a recent disconnection or repeated bounced payments.
• Installments are spread over at least five billing cycles unless you agree to fewer.
• Under the summer and winter plan rule, the first payment can be no more than 50% of the amount due.
• A plan may include a one-time late penalty, but it cannot include a finance charge.

Providers must also offer level or average billing to customers who are not behind, which evens out high summer bills over the year. Ask for both by phone and write down the date, the name of the person you spoke with, and the terms. Keeping every installment payment is important; missing one can let the provider move ahead with disconnection.

Shutoff rules and medical protections

PUC rule 16 TAC 25.483 covers disconnection by retail electric providers. Key protections include:

• Notice first. A disconnection notice cannot go out before the day after the bill is due, and the disconnection date must be at least 10 days after the notice is issued.
• Weekends and holidays. A provider generally may not request disconnection on a weekend, a holiday, or the day before one, unless staff are available to take payments and reconnect service.
• Extreme weather emergencies. A provider must not authorize disconnection for nonpayment in a county having an extreme weather emergency. That means the previous day’s high did not go above 32 degrees and the forecast stays at or below freezing for the next 24 hours, or the National Weather Service has issued a heat advisory for the county that day or either of the two days before.
• Critical care customers. If someone in the home would become seriously ill without electricity, a physician can certify the home as a Critical Care Residential Customer. The provider must give written notice at least 21 days before any disconnection, and a physician statement plus a payment plan can delay disconnection for up to 63 days from the bill date.
• Chronic condition customers. A home with a person whose serious medical condition needs electricity can be designated a Chronic Condition Residential Customer. These customers also get at least 21 days of written notice before disconnection.

Under PUC rule 16 TAC 25.497, a physician submits the commission-approved form to your local wires company (the transmission and distribution utility). A critical care designation lasts two years. A chronic condition designation lasts 90 days, or for a life-long condition, one year or until the person moves out. These designations do not erase what you owe, so pair them with a payment plan and a CEAP application.

Which rules apply to your utility?

The rules above are written for retail electric providers in the competitive market, which covers much of Texas, including the Dallas–Fort Worth and Houston areas. Other customers are served differently:

• City-owned utilities, such as those in Austin and San Antonio, and electric co-ops mostly set their own billing and shutoff policies. Many have their own discount or assistance programs, so call them and ask.
• Utilities outside the ERCOT market, in parts of East Texas, the Panhandle, and El Paso, follow a separate PUC rule set for integrated utilities.
• Natural gas utilities are regulated mainly by the Railroad Commission of Texas or by cities, not the PUC.

Your bill names your provider and, for most customers, your wires company. If you are not sure which rules apply, or think a provider broke them, contact the PUC’s Customer Protection Division through its consumer page. Filing a complaint is free.

Help with water and sewer bills

There is no statewide water bill program in Texas right now. The federal Low Income Household Water Assistance Program, which paid water bills during the pandemic, has ended. Water help today is mostly local:

• City water utilities often have customer assistance programs, senior or disability discounts, or funds supported by customer donations. Ask your water utility what it offers.
• Payment plans and leak adjustments. Most utilities will set up a payment plan, and many will reduce a bill caused by a repaired leak if you show proof of the repair.
• 211 Texas keeps lists of charities and churches that help with water bills.
• Some private water utilities are regulated by the PUC, which has its own customer rules for water and sewer service, including limits during extreme weather.

If your water bill is part of your rent, talk to your landlord and to legal aid before you fall behind, since unpaid utility charges can become an eviction issue.

Weatherization to lower future bills

The Weatherization Assistance Program, also run through TDHCA’s local agencies, makes homes more energy efficient at no cost to eligible households. Work can include insulation, sealing air leaks, repairing or replacing unsafe heating and cooling systems, and other improvements chosen after an energy audit of the home. Renters can qualify, usually with the landlord’s permission.

Weatherization has its own income limit and priority rules, which TDHCA publishes each year, and waiting lists are common. Ask about it when you apply for CEAP, since many agencies run both. Our national guide to the Weatherization Assistance Program explains what to expect during the home visit.

Lifeline for phone and internet

Lifeline is a federal program that lowers the monthly cost of phone or internet service. According to the Federal Communications Commission, it gives eligible households a discount of up to $9.25 a month, or up to $34.25 on Tribal lands. You can qualify with income at or below 135% of the federal poverty guidelines or by taking part in programs such as SNAP, Medicaid, SSI, federal public housing, or the Veterans Pension.

Only one Lifeline benefit is allowed per household. Apply through a participating phone or internet company or through the national verifier on the FCC’s Lifeline pages.

Texas utility help compared

Getting other benefits can free up money for bills too. High utility costs raise SNAP benefits, so if you get SNAP, report your utility bills. See our guide to broader Texas financial assistance for SNAP, TANF, and health coverage.

What documents do I need to apply?

Expect to show photo ID, Social Security numbers for the people applying, proof of income for the last 30 days, and proof of where you live, plus any paper that shows the emergency itself. Our document checklist explains what counts for each item and what to do if something is missing. If you don't have everything yet, apply anyway and ask the office how long you have to bring the rest.

Steps to take this week

1. Find your CEAP agency through TDHCA or 2-1-1, and apply with all your documents.
2. Say “crisis” if you have a disconnection notice or no fuel.
3. Call your electric provider and ask for a deferred payment plan and level billing.
4. Ask your doctor about a critical care or chronic condition form if someone in the home needs electricity for health.
5. Ask about weatherization and apply for Lifeline if your phone bill is a strain.
6. Dial 2-1-1 for local water and utility funds to cover any gap.

Related guides

• LIHEAP
• Churches that help with utility bills
• Utility relief programs
• Hardship grants in Texas

Frequently asked questions

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Utility rules differ by provider type, and program funding changes during the year. National Relief Program is an independent website and is not affiliated with TDHCA, the PUC, or any utility or government agency.