AUTHORIZED USES OF FUNDS.

SEC. 305. AUTHORIZED USES OF FUNDS. (a) In General.—Paragraph (1) of section 2605(b) (42 U.S.C. 8624(b)(1) is amended to read as follows: “(1) use the funds available under this title to— “(A) conduct outreach activities and provide assistance to low income households in meeting their home energy costs, particularly those with the lowest incomes that pay a high proportion of household income for home energy, consistent with paragraph (5); “(B) intervene in energy crisis situations; “(C) provide low-cost residential weatherization and other cost-effective energy-related home repair; and “(D) plan, develop, and administer the State’s program under this title including leveraging programs, and the State agrees not to use such funds for any purposes other than those specified in this title;”. (b) Encouraged Reduced Home Energy Needs.—Section 2605(b) (42 U.S.C. 8624(b)) is amended— (1) in paragraph (9)(B), by inserting before the semicolon the following: “(except for the costs of the activities described in paragraph (16))”; (2) in paragraph (15), by striking the period and inserting “; and”; and (3) by inserting after paragraph (15) the following new paragraph: “(16) use up to 5 percent of such funds, at its option, to provide services that encourage and enable households to reduce their home energy needs and thereby the need for energy assistance, including needs assessments, counseling, and assistance with energy vendors, and report to the Secretary concerning the impact of such activities on the number of households served, the level of direct benefits provided to those households, and the number of households that remain unserved.”.