County Secures Federal Grants for Energy-Efficient Homes
Earlier this month, the US Department of Energy (DOE) announced that Dane County has been awarded $266,890 in Energy Efficiency & Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) funds. These funds will support a campaign named Home Energy Guides, focusing on improving home energy efficiency and electrification in households typically underserved by energy programs.
According to the Oregon Observer, OECC will train staff at the community-based organizations so that they can identify the efficiency and electrification opportunities in homes and so that they also understand the array of programs available to address those opportunities. Then OECC will support the community teams as they do outreach and engagement to connect households with programs.
“Dane County aims to achieve a just clean energy future—which means ensuring that all members of our community have access to services that reduce energy bills as well as access to the family-supporting jobs associated with delivering those energy services,” said Dane County Executive Jamie Kuhn. “I’m proud that we are investing these federal funds in partnerships with community-based organizations, building local organizational capacity to address household energy issues over the long term.”
Under the federal Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act of 2021, the Biden Administration has expanded existing resources like Low Income Weatherization while also creating new Home Energy Rebate programs to support low and moderate income households realize the benefits of energy efficiency and electrification via rebates that can cover up to 100% of the costs of some measures. These programs create substantive opportunities to renovate existing homes and apartments, reducing energy bills while increasing comfort and safety.