Maine housing officials will meet next week to decide if they want to use an additional $79 million in federal money to help more Mainers stay warm this winter or to boost the amount of help people get.

Congress voted last month to nearly double federal funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program. That money, about $5.1 billion, was released Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Maine’s share should be $79 million.

“Now the question is how will they divide that up,” said Dana Stevens, housing and energy services director for Community Concepts, Inc. CCI is the agency responsible for distributing LIHEAP funds to Androscoggin and Oxford counties.

MaineHousing’s Julie Hashem confirmed that the group’s board of directors is scheduled to meet this week to discuss how to use the money.

With that money, the state could double the number of Mainers eligible to receive help from LIHEAP, Stevens said.

“And that would be great, but it means that the amount each person gets will stay the same,” Stevens said. “That’s the decision they face.”

The need for help has outstripped LIHEAP funding, Stevens said. CCI has received more than 6,400 applications for help for this coming winter. It’s been able to certify 1,500 applications so far.

“Normally, statewide, there are about 50,000 people in Maine that qualify for LIHEAP help,” he said. Those are people who are about 170 percent of the federal poverty level – about $36,000 for a family of four.

“The federal government is allowing states to increase eligibility to 230 percent of the poverty level, and that effectively doubles the number of people eligible,” Stevens said. Maine has 50,000 eligible under the current guidelines, he said.

“But the benefit now is based on usage, and it amounts to about $400 per application,” he said. “Now, roughly, it’s designed to buy 28 days worth of oil. So if they keep the eligibility level the same, they can make the individual benefit bigger.”