US Energy Policies at the State Level
Washington, DC, 23.09.2008 - Alliance to Save Energy
These new briefings are an important resource for anyone interested in U.S. energy policy at the State level.
As part of efforts to promote and support sub-national activities in renewable energy and energy efficiency, REEEP's North American Secretariat would like to draw attention to the first in a series of 12 policy briefs surveying state-level energy efficiency policies and programs and lessons learned from their implementation. The series, released by the Alliance to Save Energy, will serve as a compendium of energy efficiency policies at the state level and will function as a clearinghouse for anyone interested in state energy policy
The briefs will be released one by one in coming weeks and posted on the Alliance website. As a whole, they comprise State Energy Efficiency Policies: Options and Lessons Learned, a report intended to guide state policy makers, as well as federal agencies and nonprofit organizations, in formulating successful energy efficiency policies and programs.
Matthew Brown, president of InterEnergy Solutions and former energy program director at the National Conference of State Legislatures, prepared the report with substantive input from the Alliance.
The first brief, Funding Mechanisms for Energy Efficiency, explores four potential funding mechanisms whereby states can collect money for energy efficiency programs – state treasury funds, state bonding, public benefit funds, and environmental fines – and the pros and cons of each approach.
“Many new energy efficiency policies are initiated and tested at the state level,” said Alliance President Kateri Callahan. “These policy briefs will broadly disseminate the lessons learned so they can be applied in additional states, and even at the federal level.”
She added, “These state policy briefs underscore the words of Justice Louis Brandeis that ‘It is one of the happy incidents of the federal system that a single courageous state may serve as a laboratory, and try novel experiments without risk to the rest of the country.’”
Said Brown, “During my years at the National Conference of State Legislatures, the most common questions from constituents were about real-life experiences with energy policies – not simply what states could do, but also what results they could expect from pursuing various policies. This report is a response to such inquires and is intended to provide, in one place, detailed information about various state energy efficiency policy options and their outcomes.”
California Energy Commission Chair Jackalyne Pfannenstiel, who is a member of the Alliance’s Board of Directors, commented, “State Energy Efficiency Policies will prove to be a valuable resource for state policymakers who are committed to today’s critical task of advancing energy efficiency to extend our nation’s energy supplies, protect our environment, and help state governments, businesses, and consumers reduce their energy expenditures.”
Subsequent policy briefs will cover energy efficiency tax incentives, appliance standards, building codes, outreach campaigns, program administration, “lead by example” programs to increase state governments’ energy efficiency, loan programs, on-bill financing, rebate and grant programs, utility incentives, and energy efficiency resource standards.
Please follow the link below for the full document, and remember to check back every week for a new brief.