As households ramp up air conditioners to stay cool this summer, many will find themselves with higher energy bills. Paying these bills will be easier for some than for others. Low-income households, who spend on average three times more of their income on energy bills than other households, will undoubtedly find it more difficult to adjust to higher bills in both the summer and winter months.
Many households can address high energy burdens by taking advantage of energy efficiency programs run by their utilities. These programs provide multiple benefits beyond energy and bill savings, such as fewer shut offs, healthier homes, less outdoor pollution, and more local jobs.
To better understand the scope and reach of low-income energy efficiency programs, ACEEE completed a new baseline assessment of the electric and natural gas programs that specifically target low-income households in the largest US cities. The assessment complements previous ACEEE research that explored best practice elements for low-income utility programs. This paper examines total investments in these programs, energy savings impacts, customer participation, and utilization of best practices for more than 70 utilities’ low-income programs. The paper also includes data tables that chronicle this information for each utility.
Read more (American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy)
New appliance standards that states can adopt in the near term have the potential to save
consumers and businesses billions of dollars while conserving energy and water resources.
Appliance standards boost local economies since consumers and businesses spend most of
the economic savings on other goods and services. The energy and water savings from
standards can improve electric system reliability and defer or reduce the need for new
energy and water infrastructure, which lowers utility rates for consumers. And the energy
savings from standards also result in reductions in emissions of air pollutants, which can
provide public health benefits while helping states meet clean air standards and greenhouse gas emissions targets.
Appliance, equipment, lighting, and plumbing product standards are a proven, successful
policy at the state level.1 At least 18 states have enacted appliance standards at various
times. These state standards have not only benefited the residents of those states, but have also helped spur national standards. Most of today’s national standards, which cover
products ranging from refrigerators to commercial air conditioners to electric motors,
started out at the state level. Even when state standards do not become national standards, adoption by just a few states can be sufficient to affect national markets. By going first, states have driven changes to national markets that have delivered very large savings.
States now have the opportunity to build on this legacy and once again take the lead in advancing new appliance efficiency standards to save energy and water, lower utility bills for consumers and businesses, and reduce air pollutant emissions.
Read more (ACEEE)
(WASHINGTON, DC) – Today, Mayor Bowser and DC United announced a $25 million private clean energy financing deal for the installation of state-of-the-art energy and water efficiency measures, an 884 KW solar array, and stormwater retention systems at DC United’s 20,000-seat Audi Field soccer stadium. The measures are being funded through the Department of Energy and Environment’s Property Assessed Clean Energy (DC PACE) program, DC’s innovative green financing solution, which operates through a public-private partnership, allowing local lenders to fund environmentally beneficial projects at no cost to taxpayers. This deal, done through a relationship with locally-based EagleBank, marks the nation’s largest single PACE note issued to date, and the first issued for a stadium project.
“We know that cities throughout the U.S. will be leading the fight against climate change, and this deal is an example of how Washington, DC can think globally while acting locally,” said Mayor Bowser who recently signed an executive order committing DC to meet the goals of the Paris Climate Accord. “This deal will not only allow us to green Audi Field, it will also create new opportunities for local businesses and high-quality green jobs for DC residents.”
Read more (DC.gov)
Check the PACE fact sheet and numbers (DC PACE News)
Two states in the Southeast U.S. are moving to step up their energy efficiency mandates by taking lessons from programs in Arkansas.
Widely believed to be the first initiative in the Southeast to decouple utility revenues from power sales, Arkansas’ success to date is serving as proof that such regulations can benefit ratepayers and utilities while creating new energy efficiency jobs.
Mississippi and Louisiana are the latest states to seriously consider such incentives aimed at utility programs that can save electricity and natural gas ratepayers’ money. The catch: much as they do with plans to generate more power with new generating plants, these states are assessing how best to allow utilities to profit by cutting customers’ energy usage.
Read more (Southeast Energy News)
A national association of businesses focused on renewable energy, energy efficiency, smart grids, energy storage and other technologies is pushing Virginia’s gubernatorial candidates to embrace what it calls “a transformational change” in how energy is consumed and generated in the state.
“Evolving consumer preferences, dynamic new technologies and aging infrastructure are causing the energy system as we have known it to modernize,” says a memo by Advanced Energy Economy, delivered Friday to the campaigns of GOP nominee Ed Gillespie and Lt. Gov. Ralph S. Northam, the Democratic nominee. “And with this change comes opportunity.”
The policy paper by the group, which represents about 1,000 businesses in 27 states, outlines priorities aimed at creating jobs in Virginia in energy efficiency, solar and wind generation, and energy storage, among other emerging industries.
Gillespie’s campaign said the GOP nominee will be putting forward “a detailed, substantive plan to address energy priorities in the commonwealth to ensure our energy policies help foster economic growth.”
“As governor, he’ll help lead efforts to diversify Virginia’s energy portfolio for more affordable and reliable energy,” spokesman David Abrams said in a statement.
Northam said in a statement that revenue in the clean energy industry has grown from $500 million to $2 billion over the past three years.
“It’s clear to everyone that the future is in renewable energy,” Northam said. “In just the last year alone, our solar jobs have increased by 65 percent, making us one of the fastest-growing markets in the country.”
As part of President Trump’s resolution to cut government spending, the White House has proposed drastic budget reductions for the United States Department of Energy (DOE) -and for its clean-energy office. These may affect the State Energy Program (SEP), which has yielded broad-ranging health and economic benefits.
Depending on the outcome of congressional negotiations, the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) might have a 60-percent reduction in funding for 2018. This would be only $636 million as compared to $2.069 billion in 2017, according to the 2018 budget documents.
However, it is entirely possible the final decision may reflect the priorities of other stakeholders- including citizens, politicians, lobbyists, business and workers.
One program that might be defunded due to the budget cuts is the SEP. The SEP provides grant funding and technical assistance to states and territories to improve energy security, advance energy initiative, and decrease energy waste.
Read more (Clean Energy Finance Forum)
WASHINGTON, D.C. – President Trump and his allies in Congress are seeking to eliminate energy efficiency requirements for appliances, automobiles and other energy consuming applications in an effort that will cost American families and consumers trillions of dollars over time, according to a new report issued today by Public Citizen.
“Trump’s decision to target efficiency initiatives discredits his claim that he withdrew from the Paris climate accord because of concerns that the deal would cost U.S. jobs. These programs unambiguously would help meet the goals of the accord and benefit the U.S. economy and yet Trump is still targeting them,” said Taylor Lincoln, research director of Public Citizen’s Congress Watch division and author of the report, “Blinded by the light.” Read full report (Public Citizen)
Among the findings of the report:
- The far-right U.S. House Freedom Caucus seeks to repeal 22 efficiency standards for appliances that would save consumers $212 billion over the next 30 years if the standards are left intact, according to U.S. Department of Energy projections. Standards for all appliances are projected to cumulatively save Americans $2.4 trillion by 2035.
- The Trump administration has proposed eliminating the Energy Star program, which recognizes products with outstanding efficiency performance. The program saved Americans $430 billion from 1990 to 2015, and $36 billion in 2015, alone, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
- The Trump administration has put on hold automobile fuel efficiency standards for vehicles sold in 2022 to 2025 that would save consumers $56 billion due to reduced fuel costs just for vehicles sold in those model years.
- Additionally, the Trump administration proposes to eliminate the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-e) program, which provides capital for early-stage clean energy pursuits. Relatedly, the administration proposes to cut the budget of the U.S. Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) by 70 percent. EERE conducts research into clean energy technologies and is credited with helping to bring the cost of solar electricity down nearly to that of electricity generated by fossil fuels.
Read more (Public Citizen)
Eleven state attorneys general are joining environmentalists in suing the Department of Energy (DOE) over a handful of energy efficiency regulations that the Trump administration has stopped from taking effect.
The rules, covering appliances such as walk-in freezers and air compressors, were made final in December under the Obama administration.
But Trump officials never completed the administrative steps to let the rules get published in the Federal Register. The lack of action was part of the new administration’s pause and review on regulations across the government, and the opponents say that was illegal.
“These common sense energy efficiency standards are vital to our public health, our environment, and consumers’ pocketbooks. Yet the Trump administration’s policies put polluters before everyday Americans,” New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who is leading the lawsuit along with California Attorney General Xavier Becerra, said in a Tuesday statement.
Read more (The Hill)
Our first-ever scorecard of US utilities, released today, reveals striking regional differences and identifies the best — and worst — performers on energy efficiency. The 2017 Utility Energy Efficiency Scorecard looks at the performance of the 51 largest electric utilities in the United States and highlights cutting-edge efforts. Topping the list are Eversource Massachusetts and National Grid Massachusetts, which both earned the same score. Rounding out the top five are Pacific Gas & Electric, Baltimore Gas & Electric, and Eversource Connecticut.
Map showing the utilities in the scorecard, denoting the top performers.
Utilities are the primary providers of energy efficiency programs for US electricity customers. These programs deliver enormous benefits to households and businesses. Efficiency lowers customer bills, allows utilities to avoid or defer building new power plants or other infrastructure, and reduces local pollutants associated with electricity generation.
We wanted to dig further into this topic to determine which utilities are doing the best on energy efficiency programs and how others can improve. Typical programs encourage the purchase of efficient appliances, lighting, and heating, ventilation, and cooling (HVAC) — both at home and in other places such as commercial kitchens and restaurants.
Leading utilities sometimes undertake 20 or more efficiency programs. Only a few utilities take some of the more forward-thinking approaches such as promoting smart thermostats, residential geo-targeting, zero net energy buildings, and advanced space-heating heat pumps.
Read more (American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy)
By Terry McAuliff
Terry McAuliffe, a Democrat, is the governor of Virginia.
Climate change poses a serious threat to every Virginian’s way of life. Unchecked, it will affect everything from our water quality to the air we breathe to whether and where residents can make investments or buy a home.
The Hampton Roads region is the second-most vulnerable area in the United States, behind New Orleans, to the costly impacts of sea-level rise. Because it is home to the largest naval station in the world, sea-level change threatens not only our infrastructure but also our national security.
We also have $92 billion worth of residential property at risk of damage from increased storm surges. Half of Virginia’s counties face increased risk of water shortages by 2050 caused by climate-related weather shifts.
Virginia may be particularly vulnerable, but this story is not unique to our state. The effects of climate change will increasingly pose a threat to communities and economies in every corner of the country and the world.
Read more (The Washington Post)
