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The roughly $8 billion covers $5 billion for the Weatherization Assistance Program and $3 billion for the State Energy Program. In apportioning the money, the DOE said it will be partnering with state and local governments in investments that will, in effect, create 87,000 jobs and help households save on their energy bills.
Vice President Joe Biden and Energy Secretary Steve Chu provided funding details on Thursday.
How much is each state getting? The chart below, provided by the DOE, lists the sum each state is to receive -- provided that the first installment, and each one following, is used effectively. The top five recipients are Texas, which is on track to receive about $546 million in weatherization and energy efficiency money; New York, $518 million; California, $412 million; Ohio, $363 million; and Pennsylvania, $352 million.
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The chart includes funding for U.S. terrorities but does not list tribal grants. The Navajo are to receive $9,068,150 in weatherization funding; the Northern Arapahoe, $956,210.
The weatherization program provides an average of $6,500 in funding per home for energy efficiency upgrades for families with earnings equivalent to as much as twice the federal poverty level. Under current guidelines, the poverty level for a family of four is $22,050 in the District of Columbia and all states except Alaska, where it is $27,570, and Hawaii, where it is $25,360.
The state energy program grants are to be made available to consumers for home energy audits and or other energy saving improvements; development of renewable energy projects related to generation of clean electricity or production of alternative fuels; promotion of Energy Star products; efficiency retrofits for state and local government buildings; and other state efforts that enable households to save money on energy costs.
The DOE estimates that the weatherization program can help low-income households cut heating costs by an average of 32 percent a year. The agency did not have a figure for the projected drops in overall energy bills but said the participating households would save hundreds annually.
Why poverty level requirements?
Odd that these grants have a poverty level requirement.
If the goal is to conserve energy, anyone who needs to weatherize their home should consider it, regardless of household income.
I do think it's sad that the government is handing out money to do this.
The Federal Government will be loaning money from the Chinese to provide this funding.
So every low income family that weatherizes their home will, in a sense, owe the Chinese government money.
Now that the Chinese has become THE banker of the united states government, it's very hard for us to have a normal political dialogue with them.
For instance, Secretary Clinton could not bring up human rights with the Chinese when she last met with him. It's difficult to bring up human rights with a country that you owe TWO TRILLION DOLLARS to, and hope that they plan to borrow another trillion or two in the near future.
Asking China to clean up their act, considering they are the US Government's banker, is like telling your banker you don't like his suits - and he'd better change that suit the next time you meet with him to discus why you are up to your eyeballs in debt!
Low income people should reject this program because basically they are indirectly borrowing the money from the Chinese who plan to use these loans as political leverage, as well as bleed our country dry.
Hopefully I can tap in on this!!!
I'd really like to do some energy renovations in my home and maybe get some PV Solar!
Great article.
Aaron
www.LEEDLoop.com
"Where Green Building Professionals Compare Notes"