December 10, 2009

NASEO News

FEDERAL UPDATE

DOE Announces $100 Million for Advanced Research Projects

The U.S. Department of Energy announced a second round of funding opportunities for transformational energy research projects that will be made available through the Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E).  The Department announced that $100 million in Recovery Act funding will be made available to accelerate innovation in green technology, increase America's competitiveness and create jobs.  ARPA-E's first solicitation, announced earlier this year, was highly competitive and resulted in funding 37 projects aimed at transformational innovations in energy storage, biofuels, carbon capture, renewable power, building efficiency, vehicles, and other areas.  Please click here to read the full press release and additional information regarding the areas of focus.  Please click here for the funding opportunity announcement.  The deadline to submit a concept paper is January 15, 2010.

EPA: Greenhouse Gases Threaten Public Health and the Environment

After a thorough examination of the scientific evidence and careful consideration of public comments, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that greenhouse gases (GHGs) threaten the public health and welfare of the American people. EPA also finds that GHG emissions from on-road vehicles contribute to that threat.  EPA's final findings respond to the 2007 U.S. Supreme Court decision that GHGs fit within the Clean Air Act definition of air pollutants. The findings do not in and of themselves impose any emission reduction requirements but rather allow EPA to finalize the GHG standards proposed earlier this year for new light-duty vehicles as part of the joint rulemaking with the Department of Transportation.  For the full release from EPA, please click here.  For more information on EPA's findings, please click here. 

EVENTS AND WEBINARS

Mark Your Calendars: 2010 Energy Outlook Conference, February 1-4, 2010

NASEO and ASERTTI will host the 2010 Energy Outlook Conference in Washington, D.C., February 1-4, at the Fairmont Hotel.  Please click here to visit the event website for more information and to register online.  A preliminary agenda will be available soon.  Please continue to check the website for updates. 

ECW Webinar:  The Silver Lining in Climate Survey Results – December 16, 2009

The Energy Center of Wisconsin will host a free webinar, "The Silver Lining in Climate Survey Results: Refining the Design of Energy Efficiency Programs and Climate Policy," presented by Ingo Bensch, Senior Project Manager, Energy Center of Wisconsin on December 16, 2009 from 1:00 pm-2:30 pm CT.  In this live webinar, Bensch presents the 2009 results from the Midwest Energy Survey—a tracking instrument that began measuring public attitudes, awareness and practices on energy efficiency and climate in 2007. This webinar is designed for executives, regulators, legislators, energy efficiency program managers, advocates and professionals in the energy field, and offers an independent perspective on the public's attitudes, practices, and awareness of climate change and energy efficiency.  For more information and to register for the webinar, please click here.

NASEO Presents at Ecobuild America

As the administrator for the Zero Energy Commercial Buildings Consortium, NASEO recently sponsored an informal session at the Ecobuild America conference in Washington, DC to allow participants to learn more about the Consortium's efforts to promote comprehensive market transformation of commercial buildings to net-zero energy by 2030.  The Consortium is a broad-based public-private partnership intended to bring together the full range of commercial building stakeholders to collaborate with the DOE to accelerate technology innovation, process change, and market transformation.  The Consortium is guided by a Steering Committee, which includes the following:

  • Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA)
  • International Code Council (ICC)
  • Association of State Energy Research and Technology Transfer Institutions (ASERTTI)
  • American Institute of Architects (AIA)
  • Alliance to Save Energy (Alliance)      
  • National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO)
  • Illuminating Engineering Society (IES)       
  • North American Insulation Manufacturers Association (NAIMA)
  • Air-Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI)
  • U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC)
  • New Buildings Institute (NBI)      
  • American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, Inc. (ASHRAE)
  • National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA)

Regular membership is open to all organizations, and there is no fee to join.  David Terry, NASEO's Executive Director, along with other Consortium representatives, provided an overview presentation of DOE's Commercial Buildings Initiative as well as more detailed information about the Consortium's Working Groups and activities.  For more information about the Consortium, please click here.  The presentation at Ecobuild America follows a recent national webinar presented by the Consortium.  Please click here to view the slides from the webinar. 

STATE AND LOCAL NEWS

Changes Made to Nevada Small Wind Program

Nevada Energy recently increased the financial incentives for its WindGenerations program, encouraging Nevadans to install wind turbines at their homes and businesses. By doubling the cap on the total amount of kilowatts that can qualify them for financial incentives, Nevada Energy residential customers could earn rebates for a maximum of 60 kilowatts (kW) of wind-generated power.  The kW ceiling has been raised from 30 kW to 60 kW for residential customers, to 250 kW for small businesses, and 500 kW for agricultural customers. Wind projects were previously limited to 50 kW for schools and public buildings, but the limit has been increased to 250 kW and 500 kW, respectively.  Please click here for the full story. 

Massachusetts' "Commonwealth Solar" Program Proves an Overwhelming Success

A $68 million state fund to provide sizable rebates to homeowners and business owners who install solar panels was expected to last three or four years. But the program - offering homeowners rebates that averaged more than $13,000 - proved so popular that the $68 million was tapped out in October, just 22 months after the program began.  Pleasantly surprised by the overwhelming demand, Massachusetts officials are developing a successor to the original program, dubbed Commonwealth Solar, and hope to have it ready by January 1. Officials are trying to make the new subsidies as generous as the original ones.  Please click here for the full story.