Energy Efficiency Retrofits Through Rural Electricity Coops

This week a new type of utility-financed energy efficiency subsidy was introduced by Senator Merkley of Oregon to some surprisingly bipartisan support, gaining two Republican co-sponsors, in an indication of where a few Republican votes might be found in energy and climate legislation.

The Rural Energy Savings Program would provide Federal funding to rural electric co-ops so they could offer “on-bill” financing to their customers, allowing families and businesses to repay an energy efficiency retrofit loan off slowly over time through the savings on their monthly energy bill that the energy retrofit creates.

Like Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) funding it allows an entity to float bonds to provide the upfront cash, like Berkeley First and the subsequent municipal financing programs for putting in residential renewable energy.

The difference is, instead of a city or county, a rural electric coop would be fronting the money.
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