Big Changes Likely at the Federal Level May Impact ENERGY STAR

This year is seeing a lot of potential changes to energy efficiency programs. On May 5th, EPA staffers were notified of plans to reorganize the agency, closing some offices and laying off staff in the process. The ENERGY STAR program is one of the programs slated for termination by the end of this year. Since then, no new information has been forthcoming, and EPA staff are working to wind down the program.

 The Inflation Reduction Act’s provision for ten years of 45L energy-efficient new home tax credits targeted at home manufacturers is behind the industry’s move to making ENERGY STAR and/or Zero Energy Ready Homes certifications standard. The budget bill passed by the House of Representatives would end this tax credit at the end of the year. The budget bill currently before the Senate would end the tax credit one year from the passage of the budget bill, so the tax credit might last somewhat longer.

 What does this mean for NEEM? There has been talk of spinning out ENERGY STAR into the private sector. If there is any way we can retain the right to use the ENERGY STAR brand mark, the NEEM program will make sure we are able to do so. If not, NEEM was around long before ENERGY STAR came into being. Perhaps you remember Super Good Cents? I’m not proposing that we bring the brand out of retirement, but we can continue to brand homes as NEEM. The program’s long history of bringing credible third-party certification to level the playing field between energy efficiency option packages and bring quality technical support to the industry remains a solid value proposition. I hope the industry would continue to certify homes through the NEEM program.

 Of course, we would far prefer to keep ENERGY STAR as our public-facing brand. We have been reaching out to northwest representatives to make them aware of how important it is to help the buyers of affordable homes keep their utility bills low. ENERGY STAR has proven itself to be a very cost-effective way to help consumers save energy and money. At a cost of $32 million a year to run the entire program, tens of billions of dollars in consumer purchases are driven to ENERGY STAR. (Most of the purchases are appliances.) If you like the credibility ENERGY STAR lends to manufactured homes, please consider reaching out to your representatives to let them know you find the program helpful.