EEFA Updates

This Op-Ed appeared in the Richmond Times-Dispatch on August 8, 2020. Dawone Robinson is the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic director of energy affordability at the Natural Resources Defense Council. He manages EEFA’s Northeast/Mid-Atlantic region.

Quiet groups of state regulators you may never have heard of have a great deal of power to help carry us through this pandemic: public utility commissions (PUCs).

How about some good news? July brings some for low-income residents of North Carolina in the form of $6 million in new funding for energy-saving, health, and safety improvements to their homes.

The massive social disruption caused by the pandemic offers important lessons to consider as we craft strategies for aggressive climate action.

One way to reduce the near- and long-term impact of a disaster on low-income renters is to ensure that the rental properties they live in can remain functional throughout the disaster and bounce back to normal operations quickly afterward.

Our coalition will rededicate ourselves to interrogating the racial equity of current policies and practices - including our own - and being relentless in pursuing change.

“Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.” – Frederick Douglass

With the COVID-19 pandemic leaving millions of people jobless as well as concerned about their health, rent payments will put an even greater strain on tenants and building owners this month.

Inadequate, unhealthy, and unstable housing is a key, pre-existing social contributor to many of the medical problems making people more vulnerable to COVID-19, especially in systemically under-resourced communities.

Energy Efficiency for All (EEFA) released Pandemic Response Guidance to help local, state, and federal leaders address these issues in their responses to the COVID-19 crisis.

As members of the Missouri Energy Efficiency for All (MO-EEFA) coalition, we write to you today to urge strong leadership and action to protect Missouri residents.

EEFA is highlighting policies actively being developed by community groups, local, state, and federal government, mission-driven nonprofit organizations, and academic researchers for protection against eviction and other housing issues.

A letter to Governor Whitmer from the Michigan Energy Efficiency for All coalition.

As the coronavirus crisis grows, our first priority should be to assist those whose health and welfare are at most risk. Access to affordable water and energy is a crucial need at all times, but never more than now as the COVID-19 pandemic grows.

As the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic grows, we support calls for utility shutoff moratoriums to protect our most vulnerable communities.

The benefits of the nation’s largest energy resource aren’t reaching those who could most use them. We can fix that.

The people most likely to live, work, learn, and play in some of America’s most polluted and climate vulnerable environments are also most likely to be people of color, to have lower incomes, and to be targeted as hosts for pollution producing facilities.

SAHF’s latest case study, EmPOWER-ing Maryland, explores how thoughtful program design can help state- and utility-funded efficiency programs deliver on their promise of energy efficiency and affordability to more low- and moderate-income households.

Climate-resilient multifamily housing properties benefit tenants and property owners as well as its lenders and investors.

Investing in energy efficiency upgrades in multi-family affordable housing can deliver multiple benefits beyond reducing waste, ranging from lower energy costs for building owners and residents to healthier buildings with smaller carbon footprints.

It is possible to equitably switch California homes to all-electric systems, cutting fossil gas use and improving our health, according to a groundbreaking report issued today.

Energy Efficiency Day puts a spotlight on one of the most important tools in the transition beyond fossil fuels – energy efficiency. Although IL has strong standards, the Clean Energy Jobs Act (CEJA) would expand the state’s energy efficiency requirements.

Energy Efficient Maryland is urging the Maryland General Assembly to set a goal of 1% energy savings for low-income households in Maryland.

The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) joins the list of organizations calling for federal action to address the nation’s housing crisis. We cannot adequately tackle the dual crises of climate change and housing affordability in silos.

Op-ed in the Baltimore Sun calls on Maryland leaders to adopt a goal of achieving 1% annual energy savings for low-income Maryland households.

Thoughtful, strategic investment in the capacity of housing finance agencies can yield huge dividends. That has certainly been the case with the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency (“Minnesota Housing”)

EEFA-GA partners protected the interests of residential customers and especially affordable housing residents in the state’s long-range energy plan.

EEFA is launching a new video today to tell the story of why it is critical to connect climate, health, and equity by bringing energy efficiency to affordable homes.

The California Public Utilities Commission adopted major improvements for the future of its low-income energy efficiency program, incorporating an innovative multifamily whole-building model and encouraging deeper energy savings for low-income households.

Thanks to the advocacy of Energy Efficiency for All (EEFA) partners, more than 100,000 affordable apartments have received energy efficiency upgrades.

A new report makes a strong case for Los Angeles leaders to reassess the city’s investments in energy efficiency programs to ensure they better serve affordable housing residents who remain deeply underserved by these services.

California’s Energy Savings Assistance (ESA) program is designed to help low-income households save money on their monthly energy bills through no-cost weatherization services hasn’t been saving as much energy as it could be. Reform is needed.

NYC has cause to celebrate with the passage of the Climate Mobilization Act, which addresses the carbon footprint of the city’s buildings. However, two key issues must be addressed to ensure communities of color and low-income New Yorkers benefit.

Energy efficiency programs save an average of more than $100 in utility bills for low-income households living in multifamily buildings, according to an ACEEE survey of 32 programs across the United States.

The 2019 EEFA-NEWHAB Convening will be held May 21–23 in Downtown Los Angeles. The theme for this year’s gathering is “People Power: Building Healthy Homes for All.”

Through our advocacy efforts, certain utilities are expanding or improving the efficiency options available to multifamily affordable housing providers.

Making multifamily residential properties more energy efficient is a key strategy for reducing the disproportionate energy cost burden facing families on limited incomes. Energy cost burden is the percentage of household income spent on energy bills.

Huge numbers of Californians struggle and sacrifice to afford energy bills - a fact most Californians understand and would even pay more to rectify, a new poll commissioned by Energy Efficiency for All shows.

There is no question that investing in energy efficiency upgrades has the potential to deliver substantial financial, environmental, and health benefits to building owners and residents.

Energy Efficiency for All and the Environmental and Energy Study Institute held a briefing to discuss the role of energy efficiency in reducing the cost of housing.

In this report we examine residential energy affordability in rural and small-town America.

Read the latest from EEFA State Coalitions.

Two eastern EEFA states have made large strides in energy efficiency. The “I Love NY” and “Virginia is for Lovers” states have spread some of that love to energy efficiency.

In several EEFA states, coalition partners are advancing or participating in work groups focused specifically on low-income energy needs to further the dialogue and identify equitable energy efficiency solutions.

EEFA Federal Defense has been busy protecting the programs that matter the most.

The EEFA state coalitions have been busy throughout the past few months. Read about some exciting state coalition updates.

EEFA continues to make progress in providing energy efficiency to multifamily housing. Take a look at some exciting state coalition updates.

Engaging the media is critical to educating the public about the value of energy efficiency investments in low-income multifamily housing. But how do you ensure that journalists have the background they need to report accurately on the issue?

The EEFA state coalitions have been busy throughout the past few months. Take a look at some exciting state coalition updates.

The EEFA state coalitions have been busy throughout the past few months. Take a look at some exciting state coalition updates.

Today, 48 organizations, including 20 affordable housing organizations, signed a letter to Maryland Governor Larry Hogan to underscore the importance and their continued support of EmPOWER Maryland.

Just as in many states, affordable housing is critical for low-income Minnesota residents. Many multifamily housing units in Minnesota are in need of repair and aren’t very energy efficient, resulting in high utility bills.

EEFA has completed City Challenge Pilots in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Kansas City to better understand the specific barriers each city faces.

The convening was a great success with more than 150 participants engaging in collaborative learning and solution-building sessions and plenty of networking.

The Clean Power Plan provides a historic opportunity to bring energy efficiency investment to affordable rental housing. While the U.S. Supreme Court has issued a stay, many states are moving ahead.

The new, expanded program now covers the residential sector and will likely require benchmarking to occur annually.

A hidden gem in the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan is the potential to benefit low-income communities. However, residents and advocates of these communities—often the hardest hit by dirty power—need to be ready in order to realize these benefits.

The New Orleans City Council passed Resolution R-15-599 calling on Entergy New Orleans to plan its customer-facing efficiency programs to save electricity every year equal to 2 percent of the utility’s annual sales.

Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Lab releases synthesis of 36 studies of the Weatherization Assistance Program showing families saved an average of almost $300 annually in energy costs while reducing carbon pollution by 2.2 million metric tons.

When Governor Jerry Brown signed AB 802, California became the first state in the nation with a mandate to provide energy usage data to owners of commercial and multi-family properties so they can measure the energy use of their buildings over time.

Today’s release of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Clean Power Plan (CPP) offers incentives to states that incorporate clean energy investments in low-income communities as part of their carbon emissions reduction plans.

Energy efficiency program leaders at Virginia’s largest utility, Dominion Power, just took a step forward by making a $57 million investment in low-income home improvements.

Under changes to the EmPOWER Maryland energy efficiency program - enacted a week ago - state regulators have committed us to saving a lot more electricity and natural gas.

Over the past year, Fresh Energy has partnered with Minneapolis-based affordable housing developer Aeon to establish the Minnesota Affordable Housing Multifamily Energy Network.

This weekend, my Memorial Day observance will include toasting a historic two weeks of regulatory activity in favor of low-income utility customers in Maryland, particularly those most underserved of the bunch: Renters.

Residents and owners of affordable apartment buildings in Illinois could net more than $2 billion in energy savings over the next 20 years by investing in energy efficiency measures according to a new study.

The potential for cost-effective energy savings in the rental apartments where millions of low-income Americans live is substantial—as much as 32 percent for electricity and 24 percent for natural gas.

Residents and owners of affordable apartment buildings in Illinois could net more than $2 billion in energy savings over the next 20 years by investing in energy efficiency measures according to a new study.

Residents and owners of affordable apartment buildings in Michigan could net more than $1.7 billion in energy savings over the next 20 years by investing in energy efficiency measures according to a new study released today by Energy Efficiency for All.

Paying too much for electricity and gas at a time when household budgets are still pinched from the great recession can mean having less to spend on nutritious food, healthcare, and other necessities.

Governor’s new plan includes a $50-million investment in energy efficiency.

California has announced a major new set of initiatives and finalized two agency decisions.

If you look into the new energy efficiency initiatives announced today by the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), you’ll make an important discovery.

For many, the New Year means the kickoff of new resolutions, but in Michigan, one energy efficiency project that started well before the flurry of fad diets is celebrating its first six months of progress.

A new fact sheet will help regulatory attorneys and others understand aggregated data and how privacy standards vary from state to state.