Massachusetts moved up on the annual ACEEE ratings of State energy efficiency efforts from 7th to 2nd. The revamped Utility energy conservation programs are a major contributor to this.

The revamped near-final plans were just released today. You can see them here: http://www.ma-eeac.org/plan09oct.htm

The message I voiced to EEAC and Utility Programs Administrators at the last meeting, was that the home performance contracting industry needs more specific info how we are going to be involved in these programs. The MassSAVE, residential program sets the standard for efficiency retrofits.- companies like Cozy Home are in competition with the MassSAVE program, which set a standard for home performance work in our area. THe reality is that we are constantly being called to serve homeowners who have been through the program and still have major opportunities for energy savings, still have ice dams, or realize there exists significant opportunity to improve the performance of their home to benefit health and comfort.

Moreover, our clients are not able to access utility incentives and low interest financing for retrofits, unless they install measures exactly how the MassSAVE auditor determines, by the contractors MassSAVE provides… this is frustrating to many homeowners who are more aware than ever of the value in investing in improved home performance, and are willing to spend money to improve their quality of life,, reduce Co2 emissions, and reap the additional benefits that come with optimal home performance.

Below is an excerpt from the new electric plans regarding Delivery Mechanisms (p.153) :
To me this says business as usual; long wait times for service, and no opportunity for home performance contractors to design work-scopes to serve the needs of our region. Homes and occupants have varying need- it makes the most sense to enable private companies to employ their business models in their local communities, with appropriate qualifications and oversight, to be able to access incentive money for their clients.

From Utility Electric Plans:

Vendors

[CET and CSG have been vendors and will continue to be] capable of serving large numbers of customers and that have appropriate resources and experience will be included in the bidders list. Work completed by MassSAVE energy service providers and their subcontractors must meet Building Performance Institute standards or similar standards set by the individual Program Administrators. These standards require a systematic approach to home improvement that addresses all aspects of building systems.

In order to increase the number of energy efficiency contractors, the program offers an incentive/rebate to contractors who are installing retrofit weatherization measures such as insulation and air sealing. Once approval/certification criteria are determined, a statewide marketing campaign to recruit contractors will begin and a central database of authorized (certified) contractors will be established. Customers are required to have an RCS Site Visit through the Program Administrator‘s vendor to identify and prioritize all cost effective energy efficiency upgrades in order to receive an incentives or program rebate. All insulation work, whether performed by an authorized independent contractor or a vendor‘s subcontractor, will have a quality control inspection performed by the Program Administrator vendor when the work is complete. This will ensure that, either through an authorized installer or the Program Administrator‘s RCS vendor, installations meet BPI standards or similar standards set by the Program Administrators.