Assistance Programs in Oregon

Oregon Housing and Community Services helps income-eligible households with home heating and cooling bills through the federal LIHEAP program and the Oregon Energy Assistance Program. You do not apply to the state directly; you apply through the local Community Action Agency serving your county. Find your agency through Oregon Housing and Community Services at 800-453-5511 or by dialing 2-1-1.

Free home energy-efficiency work for income-eligible Oregon households: insulation, air sealing, and heating-system improvements that lower future bills, including a Home Oil Weatherization option for oil-heated homes. Oregon Housing and Community Services runs the program through local Community Action Agencies. Contact the agency serving your county, or reach Oregon Housing and Community Services at 800-453-5511, to apply.

SNAP is Oregon's food benefit program: monthly food money loaded onto an Oregon Trail Card (EBT) you use like a debit card at most grocery stores. Apply online through ONE at one.oregon.gov, at a local Oregon Department of Human Services office, or by phone at 800-699-9075, Monday through Friday, 7am to 6pm. One ONE application also checks you for the Oregon Health Plan, TANF cash, and child care help.

WIC gives healthy food, breastfeeding support, nutrition education, and health referrals to pregnant and postpartum people, infants, and children up to age 5. Oregon WIC runs through local clinics in every county. Start with the online interest form at the Oregon Health Authority WIC site, call the state WIC office at 971-673-0040, or dial 2-1-1 to find your local clinic. You finish enrolling at an appointment with the clinic.

The Oregon Health Plan, OHP, is free health coverage for Oregonians with lower incomes: working families, children, pregnant people, single adults, and seniors. Oregon expanded Medicaid, so low-income adults 19 to 64 can qualify. Apply online through ONE at one.oregon.gov or by phone at 800-699-9075, Monday through Friday, 7am to 6pm. Members with coverage questions call 800-273-0557.

The Oregon Earned Income Credit is a refundable state credit for working people who qualify for the federal Earned Income Tax Credit. It is worth 9 percent of your federal EITC, and 12 percent if you have a dependent who is younger than 3 at the end of the tax year. Because it is refundable, it can come back to you as a refund even if you owe no Oregon tax. Claim it on your Oregon return.

The Oregon Kids Credit is a refundable state tax credit worth up to $1,050 for each qualifying child age 5 or younger, for up to five children. For the 2025 tax year the full credit goes to families with modified adjusted gross income of $26,550 or less, and it phases out completely at $31,550. Because it is refundable, it pays out even if you owe no Oregon tax. Claim it on your Oregon return.

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, TANF, is Oregon's monthly cash assistance for low-income families with children, pregnant people, and young heads of household. A family of three with no other income can get up to $506 a month. Apply online through ONE at one.oregon.gov, at a local Oregon Department of Human Services office, or by phone at 800-699-9075. Most adults take part in the JOBS employment program.

Temporary weekly payments if you lost work through no fault of your own, from the Oregon Employment Department. File online through Frances Online at frances.oregon.gov, which is available 24 hours a day and is the easiest way, or apply by phone at 1-877-345-3484 (1-877-File-4-UI). You then file a claim for each week to keep payments coming.

Legal Aid Services of Oregon provides free civil legal help to low-income Oregonians on housing, family, public benefits, consumer, and other noncriminal matters. For an eviction, call the statewide Eviction Defense Project at 888-585-9638. For public benefits problems, call the Public Benefits Hotline at 503-241-4111. Find your local legal aid office at lasoregon.org, and free self-help information at oregonlawhelp.org.

Dial 2-1-1 from any Oregon phone for free, confidential help finding local assistance with housing, utilities, food, healthcare, and more. 211info is a statewide service. You can also text your zip code to 898211 to get connected to local resources, or search at 211info.org.