MARSHALL — A program that has helped hundreds of area families pay their heating bills is facing an uncertain future after federal staffing cuts.

The Minnesota Department of Commerce said it anticipates running out of Energy Assistance funding this month.

Deb Brandt, executive director of United Community Action Partnership, said UCAP is still encouraging families in need of Energy Assistance to apply for funding. But it’s not certain how long funding will be available.

“The program is technically open until the end of May. But it appears that if additional funding is not released on a federal level, that we may run out of money in the state of Minnesota mid-April, is what they’re anticipating,” Brandt said Friday. “We’re not really sure, depending on how many applications come in and the amount of dollars that go out.”

Brandt said to date, UCAP has helped more than 5,200 households in its service region with Energy Assistance.

Last week, cuts at the federal Department of Health and Human Services laid off all of the federal staff running the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which helps low-income households pay their heating and cooling bills.

The Minnesota Department of Commerce responded with a statement saying, “We are deeply concerned that cuts to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services risk delaying federal funds that help thousands of Minnesotans keep the lights on and heat their homes … Minnesotans know that losing heat to your home in freezing temperatures can be life-threatening.”

Minnesota Department of Commerce said it had expected an additional $12 million to $13 million in Congressionally-approved funding. Now, they anticipate running out of funds for new Energy Assistance applicants as early as mid-April.

Energy Assistance has had an impact on 672 households in Lyon County alone since Oct. 1, according to the Minnesota Commerce Department’s online Energy Assistance Program dashboard. A total of more than $341,000 in assistance has been awarded to Lyon County households since October. The average benefit in Lyon County was $509, the dashboard said.

The dashboard said Energy Assistance grant funding has also helped hundreds of households in surrounding counties. Between Oct. 1 and April 7, the Energy Assistance Program awarded about $106,000 in assistance in Lincoln County; about $191,000 in Yellow Medicine County; about $261,000 in Redwood County; about $160,000 in Pipestone County; and about $156,000 in Murray County.

The Minnesota Department of Commerce said about two-thirds of the state’s Energy Assistance Program payments go to households in greater Minnesota.

Brandt said UCAP and its state contacts didn’t know a lot about what will happen to federal Energy Assistance funding in the future.

“But they’ve been really excellent at passing along information to us as soon as they find out,” she said.