Today, the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced the final round of funding for the Inflation Reduction Act’s Green and Resilient Retrofit Program (GRRP), marking the delivery of more than $1.4 billion to provide clean, energy-efficient housing upgrades for low-income communities, veterans, and people with disabilities.
BALTIMORE, MD – Buildings play an unexpectedly large role in contributing to dangerous levels of smog pollution, according to new modeling from Sonoma Technology in a report commissioned by the Sierra Club. Smog pollution, otherwise known as ground-level ozone, is a major public health issue in Maryland, with approximately 5.1 million Marylanders living in areas with unsafe levels of smog. Smog can cause chronic respiratory illnesses, asthma attacks, bronchitis, and premature death.
A new policy primer, released today by Sierra Club and Climate & Community Institute, lays out why and how decision-makers at the local, state, and federal level can prioritize tenant protections as efforts to decarbonize buildings gain momentum. From rent and eviction protections to strongly enforced habitability standards, the primer explains a suite of complementary policies and provides existing examples of each as a framework for similar legislation.
Denver, CO - The Sierra Club, represented by attorneys with Earthjustice, filed a motion to intervene in a second lawsuit targeting Denver’s programs to reduce building sector emissions that contribute to the city’s poor air quality and to climate change.
TALENT, OR — As extreme weather, including scorching heat waves, threatens large parts of Oregon, Talent’s City Council voted yesterday to pass Resolution 2024-097-R, which encourages upgrades of homes and nonresidential buildings so they have modern, highly efficient appliances.
Today, the Department of Energy released its National Definition of a Zero Emissions Building, which provides clear, certifiable criteria to designate clean buildings. A building can be certified as “zero emissions” through a verification process by third-party, licensed contractors.
Today, the Biden administration announced New York as the first state to receive funding through the Department of Energy’s Home Energy Rebates Programs, created by the historic Inflation Reduction Act. This new program gives low-and middle- income New Yorkers access to efficiency and clean energy improvements that will make their homes safer and more comfortable, while also lowering energy bills.
Denver, CO — Yesterday, Gov. Polis signed HB24-1370 "Reduce Cost of Use of Natural Gas" into law, launching a process that will encourage community pilot projects across the state to reduce expensive and polluting methane gas infrastructure. Learnings from these pilots will be critical in accelerating the transition away from gas, saving utility customers money, increasing efficiency, creating local jobs, and ultimately cutting dangerous climate and air pollution.
The Senate voted yesterday to overturn the energy efficiency standard for furnaces finalized by the Biden administration to save consumers an estimated $1.5 billion and protect public health and the environment. President Biden has said he will veto the effort.
Denver, CO -- Today the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) concluded deliberations on Xcel Energy's first Clean Heat Plan with a preliminary approval for a portfolio of resources that will substantially reduce emissions from the natural gas utility through investment in building electrification and energy efficiency. A final written order is expected in the coming weeks.
Today, Republicans in the US House of Representatives voted to pass H.R. 6192, the Hands Off Our Home Appliances Act, a bill that would significantly limit the Department of Energy's capacity to enforce energy efficiency standards.
Today, the US Department of Energy finalized a strong energy efficiency standard for water heaters that will benefit consumers and our climate. Phasing out energy-wasting water heaters will lead to lower residential energy bills and help shift the market away from inefficient technologies -- reducing water and energy bills by $7.6 billion per year and easing the strain on the grid, according to the DOE.