What if you could make your home more comfortable and reduce your electric bill at the same time? That’s what Connecticut’s energy efficiency programs are doing for homes and businesses across the state.
How Energy Efficiency Saves you Money
Investments in energy efficiency save everyone money, whether you participate in the programs or not. That’s because not all electricity costs the same. As total electricity usage on the grid goes up, so does the price of each additional kWh. During times of higher demand, like evenings when families are home cooking and turning on lights, utilities purchase additional capacity from more expensive sources to meet that demand. Higher electricity usage equals higher bills for everyone. On the flip side, when individual households take advantage of energy efficiency programs to reduce their electricity usage, bills go down for everyone. As Andy Bauer, Chair of the Portland Clean Energy Task Force put it, “the more we can reduce peak demand, regardless of who does it, the more everyone benefits.”
Energy Efficiency Programs
So, what are these energy efficiency programs and how do they work? One of the main programs is Home Energy Solutions (HES), and it provides a home audit where experts recommend the best ways to achieve immediate and long-term savings through weatherization and efficiency upgrades. HES also offers free testing to low-income households, recognizing that lower income folks typically live in older, leakier homes where energy efficiency and weatherization are crucial.
Mold and asbestos are common barriers to weatherization—you can’t seal a home with those hazards inside. Utility companies estimate that over 20% of their customers experience barriers, so not only are they exposed to that health hazard; they’re also stuck with drafty, inefficient housing. To address this problem, Governor Lamont approved the allocation of $18 million in bond funding in December to establish the Housing Environmental Improvement Revolving Loan and Grant Program, which will help homes remove hazards and fund retrofitting costs.
The Moral Case for Energy Efficiency
For Terri Eickel, Executive Director of the Interreligious Eco-Justice Network (IREJN), energy efficiency isn’t just an energy issue. “It’s an environmental issue, it’s a pollution issue, but it’s also a moral issue. Every faith tradition talks about the importance of caring for the planet, and about caring for the lower income, people who are sick, and those who are struggling. Energy efficiency addresses both of those things simultaneously.” Not only does it lower everyone’s electric bill, reducing our energy use also reduces emissions, improves health outcomes, and creates jobs. “Energy efficiency is about helping people,” Eickel emphasized, “anyone talking about affordability and reducing electric bills should be promoting these energy efficiency programs.”
Attacks on Energy Efficiency Funding
Connecticut’s energy efficiency programs are benefiting households and businesses in every town, every year. But these programs are at risk. With affordability high on everyone’s priority list, eliminating Energy Efficiency programs has been raised as a simple, if misleading solution to lower electric bills. However, these programs are our best solution to high energy costs, not the source of the problem. Every $1 invested in energy efficiency creates $3 in lifetime benefits, and every $1 of public money invested unlocks more than $5 in additional investment.
“To invest in energy efficiency is to support the green economy in a way that allows everyone to participate. Energy efficiency provides a strong foundation for an energy system that provides solutions for all,” said Jayson Velazquez, Manager of Community Outreach at the Connecticut Green Bank.
Energy Efficiency programs are funded through the Conservation & Load Management portion of the Public Benefits Charge- a $0.006 per kWh charge on your electric bill. But eliminating the Public Benefits Charge wouldn’t reduce your bill. Eliminating funding for energy efficiency would force higher spending on the energy distribution system, transmission, and supply. 2024 program results show that investments in energy efficiency saved more than $39 million in transmission and distribution costs across the state—costs that would have been passed on to ratepayers. Eliminating the Public Benefits Charge wouldn’t improve affordability; it would just cause other parts of the bill to go up.
Last year, our energy savings were equivalent to a 58 mW power plant. That’s a power plant we don’t have to build; energy we don’t have to buy on the market. Energy efficiency programs create savings for everyone, system wide, and must be protected to safeguard affordability in Connecticut.