President Obama proposed a new program Tuesday that would reimburse homeowners for energy-efficient appliances and insulation, part of a broader plan to stimulate the economy.
The administration didn’t provide immediate details, but said it would work with Congress on crafting legislation. Steve Nadel, director at the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, who’s helping write the bill, said a homeowner could receive up to $12,000 in rebates.
The proposal is part of the President’s larger spending plan, which also includes money for small businesses, renewable energy manufacturing, and infrastructure.
We know energy efficiency “creates jobs, saves money for families, and reduces the pollution that threatens our environment,” Obama said. “With additional resources, in areas like advanced manufacturing of wind turbines and solar panels, for instance, we can help turn good ideas into good private-sector jobs.”
OK,here’s one little break. IF you go for this program,you can only buy and install windows,doors,a/c and heater units and insulation,dry wall(not from China if you’ve been keeping up on this one)that is approved under this coming program. It also cannot be done yourself. It must be installed by a goverment approved inspector that has come in your home and audited your home based on figures more than likely tossed out at them by European standards or at worst,California standards of efficiency. KEEP READING.
The program contains two parts: money for homeowners for efficiency projects, and money for companies in the renewable energy and efficiency space.
The plan will likely create a new program where private contractors conduct home energy audits, buy the necessary gear and install it, according to a staffer on the Senate Energy Committee and Nadel at the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy.
Big-ticket items like air conditioners, heating systems, washing machines, refrigerators, windows and insulation would likely be covered, Nadel said.
Consumers might be eligible for a 50% rebate on both the price of the equipment and the installation, up to $12,000, said Nadel. So far, there is no income restriction on who is eligible. That would mean a household could spend as much as $24,000 on upgrades and get half back.
Homes that take full advantage of the program could see their energy bills drop as much as 20%, he said. The program is expected to cost in the $10 billion range.
It’s not clear how the home efficiency plan would be administered - the government may issue rebates to consumers directly, homeowners might get a tax credit, or the program could be run via state agencies.
If consumers have to spend a lot of money up front to get the credit, it could throw a wrench in the works, David Kreutzer, an energy analyst at the Heritage Foundation, told CNN.
“This will not be something that’s attractive to people who are having trouble already making their budget payments month to month or week to week,” he said.
Here’s another break,and I’m actually happy to see that they are looking at this from our side. Historical homes are held to strict guidelines by the cities they are in to keep them as close to original specs to keep them JUST THAT. HISTORICAL. Grandfathered homes have long been exempt from having to make these upgrades into energy efficiency and have been afforded tax breaks long before this has come along. I have done some figuring on my home and 12 grand,which is the total I could be reimbursed,might just cover getting the new roof put on and some other damage done to my home during hurricane IKE that Farm Beaureau Insurance wouldn’t pay out on. The firber glass insualtion in my attic is from the 1970’s and as I priced it a few years ago,will cost roughly 1500 for removal and reinstallation,including disposal. Every window in my home is single pane glass(as they mostly were in 1964 when this house was built,and will cost a small fortune to replace,including the bay window.),the only double pane glass I have is on a brand new back door going into my back yard that I had to trim to fit into the original door frame,because,as I have specified many times before,new shit just will not fit into old shit unless you trim to make it fit. Keep reading…..
To keep consumers from having to spend thousands of dollars before getting reimbursed, Nadel said, one idea is to have contractors or big box retailers pay part of the cost up front.
Fraud issues could also come up, Kreutzer said.
“Any program that is going to run through a third party and is going to distribute billions of dollars needs to have lots of checks and balances to make sure there’s not abuse,” he said.
Nadel noted that as a way to guard against fraud, contractors would have to be certified to participate.
I called this one earlier didn’t I? L&S,better get with the program,there’s gubment money to be made…..
Energy company boost
Obama’s new spending plan also calls for renewable energy companies to get additional support. That could come in the form of loan guarantees - basically, money the government uses to secure loans for startups.
In the original stimulus bill passed earlier this year, $6 billion was earmarked for such loan guarantees. But then lawmakers took away $2 billion to fund Cash for Clunkers - the popular program that paid people to turn in their old cars.
The $4 billion from the original bill has funded about $40 billion in loans, said the staffer on the Senate Energy Committee. Meanwhile, firms are hoping for another $4 billion in loan guarantees, since they have another $40 billion worth of projects that need funding.
A bill on energy efficiency reimbursements already has supporters in the Senate.
“Not only will [such legislation] increase our energy security and transform our energy infrastructure to a modern, clean and efficient one,” Senate Energy Committee Chairman Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., wrote in a recent op-ed column in the Hill, a Capitol Hill newspaper. “But it also will position the United States to lead in the development of clean energy technologies.”
I was with this until that last statement. Now,I do have a serious question here. In my town back in the 1940’s,there were rows and rows of houses built that are tiled on the outside with asbestos exterior tiling. Now,to bring all these homes up to code.will this plan cover the proper abatement and reinstallation of an inkind tile replacement? I know this question because I asked it when I lived in one of these houses. It’s a serious question,and is very health related because when one of these tiles falls off the house,the asbestos fibers become airborn,or if you nail your Christmas lights up to them and they crack,the fibers become air born,and because they are asbestos,there is no distributor in America that sells replacements.
But here’s the thing. I know my home will qualify for a lot of this. New windows I need badly. A new roof I need BADLY since the hurricane that my insurance adjuster swears didn’t lift the whole left side of roof up off my house and meither of those trees that fell onto it did any real damage. His own words,”It’s just wavy like that from the installation.” I know I need foundation repair to level this thing out before it completely splits in half and falls into a sink hole. But,if according to the plan,I have to foot this bill up front for nothing more than a rebate or a tax credit? I don’t think so. Especially not a tax credit. I owe the IRS too much now as it is,and I’m sure that’s one thing I’m sure this government program is banking on,that money gone to tax credits doesn’t get reimbursed to home owners,but instead goes straight to the IRS to pay back taxes.
As far as this actually creating jobs,I don’t see it as most of the home building contractors already have work forces in place,or at least they do down here,and the rest of their labor comes from day labor places(yes you all know what I’m talking about,don’t argue because it’s TRUE.) that won’t be registered with the Labor Dept. because a lot of these guys get paid cash under the table. Que paso,Senor? Mas denaro? KNow what I mean Vern?
Let’s just see how this one goes….
