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California Community Choice Aggregator MCE Details Energy Efficiency Savings in Report

August 7, 2023

by APPA News
August 7, 2023

California community choice aggregator MCE recently released its 2022 energy efficiency annual report, which notes that its customers received over $2.35 million in rebates.

The rebates helped residents and businesses make upgrades to save energy across lighting, refrigeration, air conditioning, and more.

Low-income, state-designated disadvantaged communities who are traditionally underserved by energy efficiency programs were prioritized among many of MCE’s initiatives. Eight multifamily properties will receive over $580,000 to complete energy upgrades across 784 low-income units.

Over 360 residents received $1.5 million in no-cost air sealing, insulation, and other efficiency upgrades.

Incentives also included $146,000 for agricultural customers, $478,000 for businesses and almost $200,000 for industrial customers.

Looking ahead, the California Public Utilities Commission has unanimously approved $78 million in energy efficiency funding to support MCE programs for 2024-2027.

The report is available here.

DOE Offers $8.5 Billion to States, Territories for Home Energy Rebates

July 31, 2023

by Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Drector
July 31, 2023

The U.S. Department of Energy on July 27 announced that it is accepting applications for state and territory implementation of the two home energy rebate programs created by the Inflation Reduction Act.

These programs will provide $8.5 billion to states and territories to lower energy costs and increase efficiency in American homes “by making home energy upgrades more affordable, while ensuring all communities have access to affordable, reliable, clean electricity and helping deliver on the President’s ambitious clean energy and climate goals,” DOE said.

The published Administrative and Legal Requirements Document (ALRD) offers federal guidance and instructions for states and territories to apply for their allocation of the Home Energy Rebates programs.

Rebates will be available to consumers only after states and territories apply for and receive their funds from DOE and launch their state rebate program. 

The Home Efficiency Rebates Program will offer $4,300,000,000 in formula grants to state energy offices to reduce the upfront cost of whole-home energy efficiency upgrades in single-family and multi-family homes. The value of an eligible home’s rebate depends on the predicted energy savings attributable to the project. 

The Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates Program will offer $4,275,000,000 in formula grants to state energy offices to reduce the upfront cost of efficient electric technologies in single-family and multi-family homes. This program also provides $225,000,000 in grants to Indian tribes, however tribal guidance and application instructions are forthcoming through a separate, upcoming announcement. 

DOE has also asked states and territories to prioritize households that stand to benefit the most from these funds, including allocating at least half of the program funds to reach households with incomes at or below 80% of their area median income.

DOE is also asking states to prepare Community Benefits Plans for their home energy rebate programs “to assure funds are invested in good jobs and real economic opportunities.”

DOE will review submitted applications from states for the programs on a rolling basis.  

Once the application is approved, states may launch their program for consumers in eligible households to begin funding improvements.

In addition, many consumers can currently benefit from tax credits for clean energy and energy efficient home improvements also included in the Inflation Reduction Act. Information about consumer clean energy tax credit eligibility can be found here.  

Low-income households can also benefit from the DOE’s Weatherization Assistance Program, which offers free home efficiency upgrades for eligible households, and LIHEAP, DOE noted.

The home energy rebates will offer support and incentives for consumers to retrofit and electrify their homes, without banning or restricting the use of other technologies.

While tribal guidance and funding is not yet available, DOE said it is working to ensure that tribal programs will have maximized benefits for tribal communities, including through the program’s Tribal Consultation.

DOE and the U.S. Department of Treasury have found that the Home Energy Rebate programs will be treated as a reduction in the purchase price or cost of property for eligible upgrades and projects, and consumers receiving an Inflation Reduction Act rebate will not be required to report the value of the rebate as income.

Once the Home Energy Rebates are available, eligible rebate recipients may also claim a 25C tax credit for eligible products as applicable to the cost to the consumer after the rebate has been applied, if they have sufficient tax liability.

More information about Energy Efficient Home Improvement Tax Credits is available here.  

In the coming weeks, DOE will provide an array of assistance to states and territories as they determine their next steps in developing rebate programs and submitting applications. 

DOE’s efforts to support states and territories will include: 

EPA’s EnergyStar Program will be supporting states and territories by: 

For more information, visit the Home Energy Rebate programs website.

APPA-Funded Pilot Program Shows Value of Utilizing Coaches for Heat Pump Installations

February 10, 2023

by APPA News
February 10, 2023

A Concord Municipal Light Plant pilot program for the Massachusetts-based public power utility’s heat pump adoption initiative, completed with assistance from an American Public Power Association’s Demonstration of Energy & Efficiency Developments Program grant and Energy New England, shows the value of utilizing coaches who can walk customers through the process of installing heat pumps.

The pilot program, motivated by emissions-reductions goals set by both the Town of Concord and the utility, aimed to utilize highly trained coaches to increase installation rates for residential heat pumps through one-on-one advising sessions and regular follow-up contact. The program was completed in June 2022. The utility recruited community members who had previously installed heat pumps in their own homes, with three out of four current or former coaches having installed a heat pump in the past. The fourth is in the process of installing a heat pump in his home.

Over the course of the pilot program, these coaches conducted 351 initial consultations, which far exceeded CMLP’s goal of 150. Of those consultations, 17 percent resulted in a client installing a heat pump. By November 2022, that percentage had increased to 26 percent.

CMLP took care to prepare coaches for the demands of walking customers through a complicated, lengthy, and expensive process. Jan Aceti, Energy Conservation Coordinator with CMLP, noted the importance of coaches being both well trained and sufficiently supported, saying, “I do feel that it’s important for the coaches to feel that not only can they get expert technical advice when they need it, but that [the utility] is available to talk with them about complex issues like rebate eligibility.”

The coaches played a key role in guiding clients through the process, particularly when factors such as the home’s age necessitated a Home Energy Assessment—conducted by ENE—to determine whether a home needed improvements to insulation, windows, or weatherization before installing a heat pump.

As a technology with which many customers remain unfamiliar, heat pumps represented an area where knowledgeable, non-financially motivated consultants proved highly successful. Surveys of coaching clients saw a nine out of ten customer satisfaction rating, with 90 percent of those clients saying they would recommend the service to others.

Among CMLP’s primary motivations for this program was the ambitious emissions-reductions targets set by the Town of Concord and the utility. Per Noel Chambers, Director, Energy Efficiency and Electrification with ENE, Massachusetts has “very aggressive goals and very aggressive timelines [for emissions reductions],” and CMLP sees increased adoption of heat pumps as a key method for achieving those goals.

CMLP’s DEED report states an aim of 180 installations each year to meet its 2050 emissions targets, but the utility saw only 71 documented installations in 2021, the first year of its pilot. The utility’s pilot period concluded in June 2022, and, at the time of its final report publication, it had documented 136 installations. By the end of 2022, however, the total number of documented installations jumped to 178, with particular growth seen in the percentage of coaching-assisted installations, rising from 34 percent in 2021 to 50 percent in the first half of 2022 and 61 percent during the second half of the year.

Aceti and Chambers both noted the value of DEED grants for smaller utilities like CMLP. Aceti said the program “lends a lot of legitimacy,” serving as a guarantee to the utility and its customers that CMLP is “responsible for carrying that project to fruition.”

Chambers, speaking more broadly, emphasized the importance of putting public power utilities—particularly smaller utilities—on more level footing with investor-owned utilities: “IOUs have…the capability and ability built into their programs to conduct one-off, exploratory projects. An individual light plant – it would be impossible to develop these programs without grant funding [from programs like DEED].”

CMLP received $37,987.94 via the DEED grant and provided $33,535.53 In training and wages for the heat pump coaches, in addition to $47,212.84 in labor hours contributed by CMLP’s Energy Conservation Coordinator. Some of the coordinator’s responsibilities included assigning clients to coaches, working with the coaches to develop coaching procedures and tools, and marketing the coaching service. Though budgeted for $12,000, ENE’s financial contribution ended up being only a fraction of that amount at $250, largely because other pilot project priorities left less time than expected to work on integrating the heat pump coaching service and the home energy assessment service.

The utility plans to continue the project with an expanded in-house budget for 2023, and CMLP has considered offering wholesale decarbonization coaching services for clients in the future.

Concord Municipal Light Plant provides electric service to 6,995 residential and 1,280 commercial and municipal customers in the town of Concord. The utility does not generate any power, and therefore works to purchase as much energy as possible from non-emitting energy sources.

Energy New England is a joint action agency serving 29 utility providers across Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, and Maine. Among other member services, ENE currently conducts HEAs for 20 members, oversees rebate programs for 12 members, and provides an electric vehicle support service for 12 communities.

APPA’s Demonstration of Energy & Efficiency Developments program funds research, pilot projects, and education to improve the operations and services of public power utilities, with particular emphasis placed on the scalability and transferability of projects for other utilities. For more information on APPA’s DEED program, to become a DEED member, or to apply for a DEED grant, visit the DEED program’s webpage.

Department of Energy Announces Nearly $9 Billion for Home Energy Rebate Programs

November 15, 2022

by Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
November 15, 2022

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced nearly $9 billion will be available to states and Tribes from the Inflation Reduction Act for consumer home energy rebate programs.

DOE estimates that the home energy efficiency and electrification consumer rebates authorized will save households up to $1 billion annually.

From November through January, DOE will hold a series of listening sessions to engage a wide array of stakeholders, including direct engagement with states and Tribes, labor, industry, and others, on these consumer rebate programs.

Following the listening sessions, DOE will issue a Request for Information for public input in early 2023.

DOE anticipates that the funding to states and Tribes will be available by Spring 2023, and the rebates will be available to the public later in the year.

The Inflation Reduction Act includes multiple tax incentives and investments to bolster consumer home energy rebate programs.

Programs that states will implement include:

The home energy performance-based, whole house rebates (HOME Rebates) for:

The high-efficiency electric home rebate program to:

To learn more about home energy efficiency and electrification rebates available through Inflation Reduction Act, visit https://cleanenergy.gov/.

President Biden Signs Spending Bill that Includes $1 Billion in LIHEAP Funding

October 3, 2022

by Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
October 3, 2022

President Biden on Sept. 30 signed a stop-gap spending bill that includes $1 billion in additional funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).

Half of the funds will be distributed using the old formula, which tends to benefit heating states, while the other half will be distributed using a new formula, which provides greater benefit to cooling states relative to the old formula.

In addition, LIHEAP is expected to receive roughly $4 billion in regular appropriations for fiscal year 2023 when permanent spending bills are approved.

The American Public Power Association strongly supports LIHEAP and the funding increase including the bill, which stems in large part because of rising energy prices.

The spending bill will keep the federal government operating through December 16 to allow time for Congress to pass permanent annual spending bills for the fiscal year which begins on October 1.

The Senate passed the measure on Sept.29, with the House passing it on Sept. 30.

OPPD Uses DEED Funds To Expand Low-Income Energy Efficiency Program

July 27, 2022

by Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
July 27, 2022

The Omaha Public Power District (OPPD) in Nebraska, with financial support from American Public Power Association’s Demonstration of Energy & Efficiency Developments (DEED) program, has completed a pilot project aimed at enhancing the utility’s ability to provide lower income customers with energy savings.

The goal of the DEED project was to help OPPD expand or modify a future program for an income-qualified energy efficiency program by making customers aware of how energy efficiency measures can reduce their energy burden and cut their costs.

The DEED pilot program is a redesign of OPPD’s Smart Steps Low-Income Energy Efficiency Program.

The redesign included a more efficient, less duplicative application process under which eligibility is determined by partner agencies, not by OPPD. The redesign also expanded the definition of low-income by opening the pilot program to households with income of up to double the federal poverty level, an increase from previous 150 percent threshold.

OPPD said a major challenge for its low-income energy-efficiency program had been reaching the different segments within the low-income population such as people living in rural areas.

By partnering with Program Partner Agencies, OPPD intends to reach segments of the low-income population, particularly rural areas, that have not been reached before.

For the pilot project, OPPD established partnerships with non-profit agencies in its service territory, which covers 13 urban and rural counties, mainly in eastern Nebraska.

The partners included Habitat for Humanity Omaha, Douglas County Housing Authority, Family Housing Advisory Services, Christian Outreach Partnership of Elkhorn, Project Houseworks, Credit Advisors Foundation, Southeast Nebraska Community Action Partnership, Northeast Nebraska Community Action Partnership, and Community Action Partnership of Lancaster and Saunders County.

Habitat for Humanity Omaha and Southeast Nebraska Community Action Partnership were selected as the contractors to perform the energy efficiency measures. Both are weatherization agencies in Nebraska leveraging Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and Department of Energy funds.

The DEED project began in January 2020 but was paused in March by measures taken to slow the advance of the COVID-19 pandemic and then resumed in June 2020.

OPPD was granted an extension to July 15, 2022 to complete work on the DEED project because of limited resources as a result of several natural disasters that occurred during the project period, including a Polar Vortex that resulted in rolling blackouts for the first time in OPPD’s history and a windstorm that caused over 50 percent of the utility’s customers to lose power.

The DEED pilot project enabled OPPD will provide eligible customers with an energy efficiency kit, a home energy audit and, depending on the audit results, up to $2,000 for energy efficiency upgrades, $1,000 from OPPD and $1,000 from DEED funding.

In its final DEED report, OPPD found the average energy savings prior to the APPA investment was $102.68. With the APPA grant funds, OPPD said it was able to double the investment, with $2,000 towards energy efficiency improvements, and the average energy savings rose to $219.71. A total of 134 households were served by the pilot program.

“The compelling data proved the benefits of investing in an in-home energy assessment along with energy efficiency upgrades for income-qualified customers,” OPPD said in its final DEED report.

As a result of the pilot project OPPD also revamped and rebranded its Smart Steps to Saving Energy program, creating the Energy Efficiency Assistance Program (EEAP).

DOE To Provide Funds To States, Local Governments For Building Energy Code Modernization

July 25, 2022

by Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
July 25, 2022

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on July 21 announced a Notice of Intent (NOI) to provide $225 million for states and local governments to expand the implementation of the latest building energy codes and support the development of buildings that use less energy.

Funded by the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the Building Energy Codes: Resilient and Efficient Codes Implementation Program will help to expand building energy codes through state and local implementation and lower electricity costs for families and businesses by as much as $138 billion over the next 30 years, according to DOE.

The announcement supports the Biden-Harris Administration’s National Initiative to Advance Building Codes, launched in June 2022 by the National Climate Task Force to accelerate adoption of modern building codes.

Modern building energy codes “are critical for states and local governments because they allow for significant improvements in building energy performance and set the criteria for buildings and homes to become more durable, resilient, and better protected against extreme weather events. Building energy codes work in concert with other code provisions, such as fire, mechanical, and plumbing, and establish minimum acceptable energy efficiency for residential and commercial buildings,” DOE said.

The Resilient and Efficient Codes Implementation Program will provide competitive grants to applicants who demonstrate through partnerships innovative approaches that allow states and local governments to further their broader energy, climate and resilience goals, expand opportunities for workforce development, ensure implementation and compliance, and advance equity, energy and environmental justice.

To prepare for the release of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA), prospective applicants are encouraged to read the full Notice of Intent on EERE Exchange, which describes the intended FOA more fully, including more details about its motivation, how to prepare for its release, eligible entities and activities, and award instruments. DOE expects to issue the FOA in Fall 2022.

CPS Energy’s Five-Year Energy Efficiency And Conservation Plan Is Approved

June 29, 2022

by Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
June 29, 2022

The San Antonio City Council on June 16 approved a CPS Energy five-year energy efficiency and conservation plan.

The approved plan for CPS Energy’s evolution of its Save for Tomorrow Energy Plan (STEP), will be funded as a $350 million initiative over the next five years. The average bill impact will continue to be $3.50 per month to an energy bill. 

The program goals include 410 megawatts of demand reduction, 1% energy savings per year, 16,000 weatherized homes and 1.85 million tons of avoided carbon.

The plan includes:

Since June 2021, CPS Energy has held a dozen collaborative sessions to design a new program with feedback from the Board of Trustees, Rate Advisory Committee (RAC), Citizens Advisory Committee, the Municipal Utilities Commission, and public comment during the Board and RAC meetings.

The current STEP program expires on July 31, 2022. With this month’s approval, CPS Energy will work to finalize additional details, including public awareness and community outreach plans.

For more information about STEP, visit the STEP webpage here.

Calif. Public Utilities’ Efficiency Efforts Reduced Demand By 81 MW In 2021

June 29, 2022

by Peter Maloney
APPA News
June 29, 2022

California’s publicly owned utilities spent $159 million on energy efficiency programs in fiscal year 2021 helping to reduce demand by about 81 megawatts (MW), according to a new report from the California Municipal Utilities Association (CMUA).

Those energy efficiency investments also helped contribute to 2,851 gigawatt hours (GWh) in lifecycle energy savings and a 254 GWh reduction of annual electricity consumption, the report, Energy Efficiency in California’s Public Power Sector – 16th Edition (2022), also noted.

California’s fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30.

Since 2006, California publicly owned utilities collectively spent nearly $2.5 billion on energy efficiency and demand reduction programs, saving nearly 8,300 GWh in net energy during, the report said.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have an impact on energy efficiency, the report noted. California’s electricity demand was down in 2021, keeping energy efficiency program yields below pre-pandemic levels. In addition, some programs, such as those requiring direct interaction for installations, had to be suspended.

Some of California publicly owned utilities began to return to programs that require direct interaction while others have indicated they intend to return to those programs in 2022.

Also, the pandemic prompted some CMUA members to change their clean energy focus. The Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD), for instance, is expanding its building electrification efforts and is transitioning from an energy reduction metric to a carbon reduction metric, the report noted.

“This important report details the significant investments we are making to help our customers become more energy efficient,” Barry Moline, executive director of CMUA, said in a statement. “Energy efficiency programs are vitally important to help keep rates affordable while meeting California’s climate goals as the state continues to move toward 100 percent clean energy.”

California’s publicly owned utilities offer their customers a wide range of energy efficiency programs, including direct- and self-install programs for lighting and appliances, home weatherization and retrofits, electric vehicle incentives and rebates, energy storage, business and residential energy audits, public education, and low-income assistance, according to the report. The programs are funded from cap-and-trade allowances, the Public Goods Charge, and other sources.

The 40 publicly owned utilities that contributed data for the report provide electricity to about 25 percent of California. The commercial and industrial sectors account for about 72 percent of the annual energy savings and residential programs resulted in 26.6 percent of the total savings, according to the report.

APPA DEED Board Awards Grant Funding to Eight Utility Projects

April 22, 2022

by Vanessa Nikolic
APPA News
April 22, 2022

The American Public Power Association’s (APPA) Demonstration of Energy & Efficiency Developments (DEED) program advisory board recently awarded $495,292.43 in funding to eight APPA member utility grant proposals. 

The projects range from evaluating heat pump performance to providing guidance on grid-interactive and efficient building programs. 

Tacoma Power in Washington State received $125,000 in funding for its project focused on Commercial Heat Pump Water Heating (CHPWH) technology. The project will accelerate the deployment of high-performance CHPWH systems to equitably decarbonize and increase efficiency of the multifamily sector. 

The utility’s goal is to create a standard prescriptive program tool which could be used by any utility to run a CHPWH program for multifamily construction with minimal specialized knowledge about CHPWHs.

Wisconsin’s Manitowoc Public Utilities (MPU) earned funding for its renewable fuel conversion study for coal generation. The objective of the project is to evaluate options to secure renewable fuel source(s) sufficient to operate two circulating fluidized bed (CFB) boilers at maximum capacity factors.  

Within a rapidly-changing economic and regulatory landscape, MPU has been actively investigating the ability to successfully transition to burning solely renewable fuel pellets. However, finding raw materials has been a challenge for the utility. 

“MPU has four goals for this project: assess options to secure renewable fuel source(s); explore an in-house pelletization facility; investigate storage options for raw materials and/or pellets; and conduct an analysis of qualified biomass materials under MPU’s current Air Permit,” MPU General Manager Troy Adams said. “This grant will help fund consultant costs to conduct research on renewable biomass pelletizing facilities, storage facilities, raw material analysis, and associated project management expenses.” 

Nebraska’s Lincoln Electric System received funding from the DEED program for its heat pump rating representativeness project, a collaborative effort of utility and industry partners to improve the representativeness of ratings for variable speed heat pumps used in homes and small commercial buildings. This will be accomplished through observation of heat pump performance in a controlled field installation and comparison with corresponding laboratory test results. 

Littleton Electric Light and Water Departments in Massachusetts will use DEED funding to develop independent system operator (ISO) data integrated generator control software using artificial intelligence. The utility will create a web-based software solution and a mobile application to autonomously monitor load forecast and dispatch two peak shaving generators by utilizing real time ISO data. 

This “all in one” software will be customizable to alert utility staff when peak-shaving events should occur or any other aspect important to the utility.

Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) will apply DEED funding to its Gridware Pilot Program. This Pilot Program will deploy 50 devices on a single line segment in each of the five UAMPS member utilities to demonstrate the capabilities of the Gridware System’s monitoring system.

The Gridware System is a self-powered, low-cost monitoring solution designed to detect distribution grid faults and monitor for equipment degradation. It will provide the five UAMPS member utilities near-real-time visibility into the status of their distribution equipment, the precise dates, times and locations of unique fault classes, and insight into how equipment shifts over various time frames. 

The FREEDM Systems Center at North Carolina State University received funding for its planned demonstration of a portable solar carport with integrated electric vehicle charger. This product will increase solar adoption rates for low- and middle-income households as well as at commercial locations. 

The FREEDM Systems Center will use the funding to purchase two GismoPower carports, install electrical connections at multiple locations on its university campus to demonstrate the technology, and rent a trailer for transporting the units to various public education events throughout the year.

“Our original intent was to lease a unit for perhaps two months of evaluation,” FREEDM Systems Center Director of Industry and Innovation Ken Dulaney said. “But with DEED funding, we plan to purchase two units and host multiple demonstrations across the state.”  

Wisconsin joint action agency WPPI Energy received funding for its utility guidebook on grid-interactive and efficient building (GEB) programs. 

WPPI Energy says GEBs are highly energy efficient and have the potential to reshape buildings into valuable grid resources that can reduce electric system costs and provide customer benefits such as improved comfort and resilience.

The project aims to support small to mid-sized utilities, especially those serving rural communities, in developing their first GEB programs and offerings. WPPI will provide best practices, useful data, and a program development guidebook.

Alabama’s Huntsville Utilities accepted DEED funding for development work on a stochastic model of extreme temperature events in the region, to assist decision making by utility planners.

More-accurate extreme temperature prediction models would help the public power industry as a whole anticipate and respond to spikes in demand levels that often lead to interruption of power supply to customers during extreme temperature events. While outages cannot be completely eradicated, Huntsville’s goal is to plan effectively to ensure a reliable and robust system during extreme events.

In addition to research, development, and demonstration grant funding, the DEED program advisory board awarded $89,000 in funding to scholarship applicants and utilities hosting student interns.

Four lineworker and technical education scholarships were awarded to students referred by the City of Gastonia, North Carolina, Missouri River Energy Services, ElectriCities of North Carolina, Inc., and the City of Parker, South Dakota. 

16 APPA member utilities and joint action agencies were also awarded funds to work alongside students, who will complete important projects and tasks for their utilities’ day-to-day operations and learn more about careers in public power. 

APPA members can learn more about the DEED program and future funding opportunities on our website. The program’s next application cycle will open on May 1, 2022.