State Legislative Round-Up
• The District of Columbia's City Council voted to cut $6 million from its energy efficiency program budget for FY 2011 in order to balance the city budget.
• New Hampshire also voted to divert $3.1 million in Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) funds to its general state budget for FY 2011.
• The Maine Public Utilities Commission approved the first Triennial Plan of the Efficiency Maine Trust, from 2011 to 2013. The Trust is an independent entity that will seek to achieve ambitious energy savings and weatherization goals.
• Rhode Island enacted revenue decoupling and expanded its least cost procurement policy to include natural gas as well as electricity as part of Chapter 17 of 2010, crucial to ensuring appropriate incentives for utility investment in energy efficiency. Read NEEP's comments in support of decoupling.
• New Hampshire's SB 323 is awaiting the governor's signature. The bill requires the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to undertake a comprehensive study of the state's energy efficiency programs.
• State legislatures continue to consider new financing tools to support customer investment in energy savings. New Hampshire's General Assembly has approved both a property assessed clean energy (PACE) program and approved utility-financed loan programs, while the legislature in New York is considering both a PACE program and an on-bill financing program.
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Breaking News: Fannie and Freddie Block PACE Programs
Grist and the NY Times report that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have effectively shut down Property Assessed Clean Energy Programs. The government-sponsored mortgage giants have stated that PACE programs cannot be senior to mortgages on the property. The Department of Energy has failed thus far to resolve the dispute, putting existing and new PACE programs in jeopardy, pending Congressional action.
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8th RGGI Auction Raises $80.5 Million
The June Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) auction generated a total of $80.5 million in revenues for the participating states ($662.8 million to date). The auction price fell to $1.88 in the current market, the lowest clearing price yet for carbon allowances. While most states have reserved revenues from RGGI auctions to fund energy efficiency and clean energy programs, some have diverted funds into their general state budgets, a troubling trend.
CODES AND STANDARDS
Maine Board Votes To Adopt First Statewide Building Code
For the first time in history, Maine has adopted state-wide mandatory building and energy codes. The Maine Technical Building and Energy Codes Board (TBECB) voted to adopt the 2009 International Building Code (ICB), International Residential Code (IRC), International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) and the International Existing Building Code (IEBC) at its June meeting in Augusta. A Public Hearing is scheduled for August 26. Small towns with under 2,000 people are exempt from local enforcement of the codes, but the adopted code requirements still apply to all construction everywhere in the state. New home owners in Maine will see significant energy and cost savings as a result. The measure is also expected to reduce property insurance premiums compared to existing buildings, as the adoption and enforcement of building codes is now a factor in setting insurance premiums for buildings in all communities who provide the service.
Cities and Towns Urged to be Counted at International Codes Meeting
The International Code Council (ICC) hearings in Charlotte, North Carolina October 27-31 will offer ground-breaking opportunities for changes to both energy and green building codes. The ICC annual conference will feature the final hearing on the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) 2012, which could require new buildings to be 30 percent more efficient than does existing code. Hearings are also planned on the International Green Construction Code (IGCC). NEEP encourages municipalities to send representatives and stresses that these need not be only code officials. For more information, please contact Mark Tebbets, Building Energy Codes Project Manager at mtebbets@neep.org.
US Energy Codes Conference Set for July
The US Department of Energy (DOE)'s Energy Codes 2010 conference will be held in Charlotte, North Carolina from July 19-22. Energy Codes 2010 represents a unique opportunity to bring together state energy office representatives and members of the building industry and to discuss current building energy code issues and receive consistent technical training on building energy codes and standards. See NEEP's Building Energy Codes "Activities" site for a complete overview of code activity within the region.
PA's Look to Codes and Standards to Lock in Savings
Efficiency program administrators (PA's) are a natural partner in developing and implementing building codes and appliance standards. But how can they take credit for the savings they help deliver, and how can these complimentary policies be integrated with traditional incentives and technical support programs?
On September 28, NEEP's Evaluation, Measurement and Verification (EM&V) Forum will host a workshop to examine the potential of integrating activities in codes and standards with existing ratepayer-funded programs. The goal is to assist Forum members to develop a framework so they may claim savings from their efforts with codes and standards. While this is relatively new ground in the Northeast, California has a model that has long-engaged utilities with the research, development and implementation of codes and standards. Massachusetts is also moving in this direction.
Regulators, program administrators and other stakeholders should stay tuned to NEEP's website for more info, or contact Elizabeth Titus with the EM&V Forum at etitus@neep.org.
Rulemaking Underway for Furnace Fan Standard
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently published a framework document for residential furnace fans, kicking off a multi-year process to develop minimum energy efficiency standards for this integral piece of equipment. Once the standard is finalized and implemented, it will represent the first time furnace fans have been regulated under the DOE's standards program. NEEP staff attended a public workshop in June in Washington, D.C. which provided a presentation of the Department's plan to conduct this rulemaking and helped identify critical issues to address. The Department will accept written comments on the framework document and workshop until July 6. NEEP is in the process of developing a series of comments that will be circulated in order to reflect the unique perspectives of the region concerning this product. The final rule is due by December 2013, with an effective date 5 years in the future.
Massachusetts Gas Utilities Take a Stand for Efficiency
Five of the largest natural gas utilities in Massachusetts demonstrated great leadership recently by pledging their support for a pending standards proposal being considered by the US Department of Energy (DOE). The group includes National Grid, NSTAR, New England Gas Company, Berkshire Gas Company, and Unitil. The proposal recommends a series of improved minimum efficiency standard levels for furnaces, central air conditioners and heat pumps and includes first-of-their-kind regionally specific levels. Following an historic "consensus agreement" between efficiency advocates and the HVAC manufacturers trade association (AHRI), the DOE received considerable push back to the agreement from some groups in the natural gas industry. The Massachusetts utilities should be applauded for taking a stand on this set of standards that promises to significantly contribute to their savings targets and benefit their customers. We expect this strong show of support to help encourage other gas utilities around the country to lend their influence to the process.
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HIGH PERFORMANCE BUILDINGS
NEEP Hosts MA-CHPS Training
In partnership with the Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS), NEEP facilitated a day-long training for Massachusetts school design teams on the recently updated criteria for building green high performance schools. Over 175 architects, engineers, school facilities staff and others gathered at Manchester Essex Middle/High School, a newly-built MA-CHPS school, to learn about the protocol, the tools and the financial assistance available to communities for building healthy, energy-efficient schools. Presentation materials should be available on the High Performance Buildings website shortly.
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