Obama Administration announces $54.8 million
in funding for local energy efficiency improvements in Indian Country
Block
grants to support jobs, cut energy bills and increase
energy independence
WASHINGTON – Vice President Joe Biden and Energy Secretary Steven Chu today announced plans to invest $54.8
million in energy efficiency and conservation projects in Indian Country.
The Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant
program, funded by President Obama’s American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act, will provide formula
grants for projects that reduce total energy use and fossil fuel emissions, and improve energy efficiency
nationwide.
“These investments will save taxpayer dollars
and create jobs in communities around the country,” said Vice President Biden.
“Local leaders will have the flexibility in how they put these resources to
work – but we will hold them accountable for making the investments quickly and
wisely to spur the local economy and cut energy use.”
The funding
will support energy audits and energy efficiency
retrofits in residential and commercial buildings,
the development and implementation of advanced building codes and inspections,
and the creation of financial incentive programs
for energy efficiency improvements. Other
activities eligible for use of grant funds include transportation programs that
conserve energy, projects to reduce and capture methane and other greenhouse gas emissions from landfills, renewable energy installations on government buildings, energy efficient traffic signals and street lights, deployment of
Combined Heat and Power and district heating and cooling
systems, and others.
To ensure accountability, the Department of Energy will
provide guidance to and require grant recipients to report on the number of jobs
created or retained, energy saved, renewable energy capacity installed,
greenhouse gas emissions reduced, and funds leveraged. Funding is based
on a formula that accounts for population and energy use.
“The Block
Grants are a major investment in energy solutions that will strengthen America ’s economy and create jobs at the local level,” said
Secretary Chu. “The funding will be used for the cheapest, cleanest and most
reliable energy technologies we have – energy efficiency and conservation –
which can be deployed immediately. The grants also empower local
communities to make strategic investments to meet the nation’s long term clean
energy and climate goals.”
Cities and
counties will receive nearly $1.9 billion under the Energy Efficiency and
Conservation Block Grant Program, and states and territories will receive
nearly $770 million. States will receive and administer funds for those
counties and cities that are not large enough to qualify for direct DOE
funding. More than $54 million will flow directly to Tribal governments.
Up to $456
million of this funding is planned to be made available under a separate
competitive solicitation for local energy efficiency
projects. That solicitation will be released at a later date.
Today’s
announcement is in addition to DOE’s recent release
of nearly $8 billion to support weatherization and state energy projects.
A detailed
breakdown of the funding by state, county, city and tribal government is
available on Energy.gov/recovery.
More
information on the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program is
available on http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/wip/block_grants.cfm.
