Meeting Essential Needs

In the spring of 2005, the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) conducted a national search for “exemplary” utility-funded low income energy efficiency programs, in order to identify and provide best practice program models. Selection criteria included positive energy and cost savings impacts; replicability; and qualitative factors, such as innovation, participant satisfaction, unique services, and stakeholder support. This report presents summary observations and discusses traits of top-quality programs, and then provides a catalog of profiles of the 24 utility-funded low-income energy efficiency programs. Most programs represent collaborations between a utility or group of utilities, and local community action agencies, social service agencies, private market providers, or others.

Programs sponsored by the following public power utilities are profiled:

• Burlington Electric Department
• Long Island Power Authority
• Eugene Water Board
• WPPI member utilities