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Author(s)
Nexus Energy Center
Publication Date

This organization's community outreach YouTube channel includes more than 40 videos about energy efficiency topics and the services the program provides to homeowners.

Author(s)
U.S. Department of Energy
Publication Date

The catalog is a compilation of state and local energy efficiency potential studies to serve as a resource for energy planners and as a baseline for future analyses.

Author(s)
American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
Publication Date

This paper is a baseline assessment of electric and natural gas energy efficiency programs that target low-income households in the largest metropolitan areas in the country. ACEEE surveyed over 70 electric and natural gas utilities on their 2015 low-income program spending, energy savings, customer participation, and best practices.

Author(s)
American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
Publication Date

This report updates ACEEE's 2013 assessment of multifamily energy efficiency programs in US metropolitan areas with the most multifamily households. Using housing, policy, and utility-sector data from 2014 and 2015, this report documents how these programs have changed in the context of dynamic housing markets and statewide policy environments. The report also offers an analysis of the number, spending, offerings, and targeted participants of current programs and their potential for further expansion.

Author(s)
Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Inc.
Publication Date

The Regional Evaluation, Measurement and Verification Forum (EM&V Forum) works to support use and transparency of current best practices in evaluation, measurement, verification, and reporting of energy and demand savings, costs, avoided emissions and other impacts of energy efficiency, while also advancing the development of strategies and tools to meet evolving policy needs for efficiency.

Author(s)
Natural Resources Defense Council
Publication Date

This report examines the history of pay-for-performance (P4P) energy efficiency approaches. As the report describes, there is a diverse spectrum of pay-for-performance programs but, at the most basic level, these programs track and reward energy savings as they occur, usually by examining data from a building's energy meters -- as opposed to the more common approach of estimating savings in advance of installation and offering upfront rebates or incentives in a lump-sum payment. The report finds that P4P has some important opportunities for increasing energy savings, but also key limitations that will need to be better understood through piloting and experimentation.

Author(s)
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Publication Date

Each ResStock fact sheet presents the potential for residential energy and utility bill savings for the state. The top ten energy savings home improvements are highlighted.

Author(s)
Claire Miziolek, Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Inc.,
Joe Loper, Itron,
Abigail Daiken, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency,
Richard Counihan, Nest Labs,
Nkechi Ogbue, ecobee
Publication Date

This presentation covers control technologies, such as smart thermostats, and the opportunities they provide for program evaluation, monitoring and verification.

Author(s)
Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Inc.
Publication Date

This presentation describes the value of energy efficiency and non-energy impacts on cost effectiveness at the state level. It includes an example from Rhode Island and was presented before the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission.

Author(s)
U.S. Department of Energy
Publication Date

The work presented in this webinar is a collaborative endeavor by the ARIES Building America team and two major affordable housing providers: Habitat for Humanity International and the factory building industry. The effort is exploring options for making major reductions in space conditioning energy use (≥ 50%) while holding the line on home affordability. Specifically, the project will develop a high-performance integrated design--effectively combining an ultra-efficient thermal envelope, a very low capacity, highly efficient mechanical system, an innovative distribution system, and affordable heat recovery ventilation--and set in motion steps to rapidly move this innovation to market.

Author(s)
American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Vermont Home Energy Challenge,
Efficiency Nova Scotia,
Narragansett EnergyWise,
Cool California Challenge,
San Diego Energy Challenge,
Narragansett Residential New Construction Program

Utilities and regulators increasingly rely on behavior change programs as essential parts of their demand side management (DSM) portfolios. This report evaluates the effectiveness of currently available programs, focusing on programs that have been assessed for energy savings. This report focuses on behavior change programs that primarily rely on social-science-based strategies instead of traditional approaches such as incentives, rebates, pricing, or legal and policy strategies. The objective is to help program administrators choose effective behavior change programs for their specific purposes.

Author(s)
American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Arizona Public Service,
Northern States Power,
Commonwealth Edison Company (ComED),
Efficiency Vermont,
Energy Trust of Oregon,
Eversource Energy,
Fort Collins Utilities,
Narragansett Electric,
National Grid Massachusetts,
Otter Tail Power,
Pacific Gas and Electric,
Southern California Edison,
Seattle City Light,
Tucson Electric Power

Energy efficiency savings have grown substantially in the past ten years, and national leaders in program administration have emerged as savings levels have increased. This report reviews annual program performance for 14 leading energy efficiency program administrators, with a focus on costs, electricity savings, cost effectiveness, and portfolio design.

Author(s)
U.S. Department of Energy
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Narragansett EnergyWise Program,
AEP Ohio

This summary from a Better Buildings Residential Network peer exchange call focused on changing homeowner behaviors to reduce energy demands. It featured speakers from City of Fort Collins Utilities,  American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy, and the Rocky Mountain Institute.

Author(s)
NMR Group, Inc.
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Eversource,
United Illuminating,
Connecticut Home Energy Solutions (HES),
Mass Save,
National Grid,
Efficiency Maine,
Efficiency Vermont,
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)

This report identifies opportunities for Connecticut's Home Energy Solutions program (HES) to increase savings related to air sealing, duct sealing, and insulation.

Author(s)
The Cadmus Group, Inc.
Publication Date

The COOL SMART impact evaluation team conducted an in situ study of ductless mini‐split heat pumps (DMSHPs) in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. This report presents the consumption and savings analysis of the DMSHP study.

Author(s)
E4TheFuture,
Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2)
Publication Date

The report, based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and a survey of tens of thousands of businesses across the country, provides detailed breakdowns of clean energy jobs not available previously, and it was developed and released in connection with a major U.S. Department of Energy study of all energy jobs in America.

Author(s)
U.S. Department of Energy
Publication Date

Through field-testing and analysis, this project evaluated whole-building approaches and estimated the relative contributions of select technologies toward reducing energy use related to space conditioning in new manufactured homes. Three lab houses of varying designs were built and tested side-by-side under controlled conditions in Russellville, Alabama. The tests provided a valuable indicator of how changes in the construction of manufactured homes can contribute to significant reductions in energy use.

Author(s)
DNV GL
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
National Grid

This report presents the results of the evaluation of National Grid Rhode Island's 2014 EnergyWise program. EnergyWise is designed to achieve energy savings in single family (1-4 unit) residential homes by directly installing efficient lightbulbs and water heating measures, providing devices for homeowner use, and offering building shell retrofit rebates.

Author(s)
Environmental Law Institute
Publication Date

This report discusses indoor air quality issues, including: wildfire smoke, dampness, and mold, and the effect of energy efficiency upgrades on these health-related issues. The report describes current state policies and programs in these areas, highlighting approaches for consideration by other jurisdictions.

Author(s)
U.S. Department of Energy
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Bridging the Gap,
Nexus Energy Center,
Knoxville Extreme Energy Makeover

This document features lessons learned shared by Better Buildings Residential Network members during Peer Exchange Calls held during Fall 2015.

Author(s)
U.S. Department of Energy
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Bridging the Gap,
Nexus Energy Center,
Knoxville Extreme Energy Makeover

This document features lessons learned shared by Better Buildings Residential Network members during Peer Exchange Calls held in Winter 2016.

Author(s)
American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
Publication Date

Energy burden is the percentage of household income spent on home energy bills. In this report, ACEEE, along with the Energy Efficiency for All coalition, measures the energy burden of households in 48 of the largest American cities. The report finds that low-income, African-American, Latino, low-income multifamily, and renter households all spend a greater proportion of their income on utilities than the average family. The report also identifies energy efficiency as an underutilized strategy that can help reduce high energy burdens by as much as 30%. Given this potential, the report goes on to describe policies and programs to ramp up energy efficiency investments in low-income and underserved communities.

Author(s)
DNV GL
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
National Grid

This report provides the electric and natural gas impacts from the suite of National Grid Multifamily Retrofit Programs as determined through a billing analysis.

Author(s)
Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Inc.
Publication Date

Residential air-source heat pumps (ASHP) are a heating and air-conditioning technology that use electricity to provide a combination of space heating and cooling to homes. A new generation of ASHPs has come to market over the past five years. This report evaluates the key market barriers as well as potential opportunities to leverage. Based on an assessment of the regional ASHP market, it is clear that while ASHPs have established a viable and growing market, there remains a significant opportunity to further accelerate adoption of the technology and in the process achieve energy and cost savings to the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic region.

Author(s)
American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Focus on Energy,
National Grid Rhode Island,
DC Sustainable Energy Utility Low-Income Multifamily Initiative,
Bay Area Regional Energy Network Multifamily Building Enhancements,
Con Edison Multifamily Energy Efficiency Program,
Con Edison Multifamily Low Income Program,
Puget Sound Energy,
Xcel Energy,
Elevate Energy,
Energy Trust of Oregon,
Public Service Electric and Gas Multifamily Program,
Pacific Gas & Electric Company,
Arizona Public Service (APS) Company,
Austin Energy,
Efficiency Vermont,
CenterPoint Energy,
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA)

The multifamily sector can be hard to reach when it comes to energy efficiency programs. Besides being diverse and complex, the sector presents a unique set of challenges to efficiency investments. The result is that multifamily customers are often underserved by energy efficiency programs. Drawing on data requests and interviews with program administrators, this report summarizes the challenges to program participation and identifies best practices that programs can use to reach and retain large numbers of multifamily participants.

Author(s)
Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Inc.
Publication Date

The Regional Roundup of Energy Efficiency Policy is intended to give policymakers, regulators, efficiency proponents, program administrators and other stakeholders a comparative view of the progress of energy efficiency policies and programs across the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic region. Along with state-level highlights, the report examines regional trends and shared challenges in harnessing the potential of energy efficiency to meet today’s pressing energy and environmental challenges.

Author(s)
Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Inc.
Publication Date

This report looks into residential lighting savings assumptions found in Technical Reference Manuals (TRMs) throughout the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions to understand what values were being used for key metrics such as hours of use, delta watt, and measure life.  It provides the opportunity to view completed Standardized Methods Forms to compare evaluation methodology and results.

Author(s)
Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Inc.
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Efficiency Vermont

Home energy management systems (HEMS) continue to present a unique opportunity and challenge. While energy savings have been documented for many HEMS, some of the most promising opportunities from these devices and systems can be found in the internet of things (IoT) and smart home technologies. This report presents market updates, a regional goal, and strategies to drive market transformation and achieve the many benefits from HEMS and the Smart Energy Home.

Author(s)
Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Inc.
Publication Date

NEEP has been tracking the residential lighting market for several years and has provided analysis in many reports. As the transformation of this complex market gains traction, we find the conversation and need for new information narrowing to one key topic: LEDs. While CFLs continue to play a role in residences and amongst Northeast and Mid-Atlantic program administrators, the LED has transitioned into the starring role of the residential lighting show.

Author(s)
Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Inc.
Publication Date

This report represents NEEP’s annual assessment of the major policy developments of 2014, as well as its look into the immediate future, where NEEP gauge states’ progress toward capturing cost-effective energy efficiency as a first-order resource. While looking at the region as a whole, NEEP also provides summary and analysis of some of the biggest building energy efficiency successes and setbacks from Maine to Maryland — including significant energy efficiency legislation and regulations and changes in funding levels for energy efficiency programs.

Author(s)
State and Local Energy Efficiency Action Network
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
EnergySmart,
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA),
Enhabit,
Mass Save,
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA),
Manitoba Hydro,
Keystone Home Energy Loan Program (HELP),
Michigan Saves,
Warehouse for Energy Efficiency Loans,
Austin Energy,
Efficiency Vermot,
Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance,
Illinois Home Performance with Energy Star,
Build It Green,
Earth Advantage,
Elevate Energy,
Arizona Public Service (APS),
Pacific Gas and Electric Company,
NeighborWorks H.E.A.T. Squad

This Guide is designed to help state and local policymakers to take full advantage of new policy developments by providing them with a comprehensive set of tools to support launching or accelerating residential energy efficiency programs. The Guide focuses on four categories of policies that have proven particularly effective in providing a framework within which residential energy efficiency programs can thrive: incentives and financing, making the value of energy efficiency visible in the real estate market, data access and standardization, and supporting utility system procurement of energy efficiency.

Author(s)
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Publication Date

The Guide to Action provides in-depth information about over a dozen policies and programs that states are using to meet their energy, environmental, and economic objectives with energy efficiency, renewable energy, and combined heat and power. Each policy description is based on states’ experiences in designing and implementing policies, as documented in existing literature and shared through peer-exchange opportunities provided to states by EPA’s State Climate and Energy Program.

Author(s)
State and Local Energy Efficiency Action Network
Publication Date

Energy efficiency collaboratives vary greatly and are typically designed for a specific jurisdiction, making them hard to compare side by side. This guide seeks to highlight a few common elements and draw conclusions on the overall effectiveness of specific characteristics of collaboratives. This guide defines and examines four different types of collaboratives in terms of their origin, scope, decision-making method, membership, duration, available resources, and how they interact with and influence their respective commissions.

Author(s)
U.S. Department of Energy
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Eversource Energy Home Energy Reports program,
National Grid Home Energy Reports program

This summary from a Better Buildings Residential Network peer exchange call focused on fostering behavior change in the energy efficiency market.

Author(s)
State and Local Energy Efficiency Action Network
Publication Date

A number of states are beginning to recognize Demand Reduction Induced Price Effects (DRIPE) as a real, quantifiable benefit of energy efficiency and demand response programs. DRIPE is a measurement of the value of demand reductions in terms of the decrease in wholesale energy prices, resulting in lower total expenditures on electricity or natural gas across a given grid. This paper reviews the existing knowledge and experience from select U.S. states regarding DRIPE (including New York and Ohio), and the potential for expanded application of the concept of DRIPE by regulators.

Author(s)
American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA),
Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA),
Energy Right Solutions for Buisness,
Energy Right Solutions for Industry,
Efficiency Nova Scotia,
National Grid Energy Efficiency Program,
Energy Trust of Oregon,
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Programs,
Enhabit,
District of Columbia Sustainable Energy Utility,
BC Hydro,
Ontario Power Authority Industrial Accelerator Program,
Elevate Energy

Among the many benefits ascribed to energy efficiency is the fact that it can help create jobs. Although this is often used to motivate investments in efficiency programs, verifying job creation benefits is more complicated than it might seem at first. This paper identifies some of the issues that contribute to a lack of consistency in attempts to verify efficiency-related job creation. It then proposes an analytically rigorous and tractable framework for program evaluators to use in future assessments.

Author(s)
National Association of State Energy Officials,
Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
AlabamaWISE

This case study presents information about the AlabamaWISE program. It includes background information, approaches the program took to enhance home energy efficiency, and results achieved by the program.

Author(s)
Community Development Department of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
NeighborWorks H.E.A.T. Squad,
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA),
Watt Watchers,
Neighborhood Energy,
Energy Savers,
Ratepayer Inte-grated On-Bill Payment Program,
I'M HOME initiative,
Multifamily Energy Efficiency and Housing Affordability,
Residential Multifamily Housing Program

There are more than 17 million multifamily households nationwide, yet they remain a significant and mostly untapped opportunity for energy efficiency gains. Many cities and states that have embraced energy retrofitting as a job creator and boon to both the environment and economy have yet to address potential savings in multifamily properties, primarily because of obstacles not faced by single family and commercial properties. This paper discusses two barriers -- a lack of information and financing -- that stand in the way of multifamily energy retrofits.

Author(s)
National Association of State Energy Officials
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
National Association of State Energy Officials

The Multi-State Residential Retrofit Project is a residential energy-efficiency pilot program, funded by a competitive U.S. State Energy Program (SEP) award through the U.S. Department of Energy. The Multi-State Project operates in four states: Alabama, Massachusetts, Virginia, and Washington. During the course of this three-year process evaluation, Cadmus worked closely with NASEO and the four states to collect information about the programs from many perspectives, including: State Energy Office staff, program implementers, homeowners, auditors/contractors, real estate professionals, appraisers, lenders, and utility staff. This report discusses: the project’s context; its goals; the evaluation approach and methods; cross-cutting evaluation results; and results specific to each of the four states.

Author(s)
National Grid
Publication Date

As part of the Rhode Island Energy Challenge, National Grid called on its Rhode Island residential electric and gas customers to take a pledge to “Find Your Four” as part of a statewide community initiative to encourage homeowners to find four ways to save energy at home. A participant survey revealed that Rhode Island residential customers liked hearing energy conservation/efficiency information via the Challenge; the Challenge had them thinking and acting differently; and the Challenge had customers participating more actively in energy efficiency programs. This report provides more information on the campaign’s major impact in helping National Grid accomplish important goals, including those related to portfolio savings and customer-centric program outreach and engagement.

Author(s)
Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance (SEEA)

This report presents the impact evaluation conducted of the 13 programs in the Southeast Consortium Better Buildings Neighborhood Program (BBNP).

Author(s)
Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance (SEEA)

This interim evaluation report examines the design, delivery, and market effects of each of the Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance's (SEEA) thirteen sub-grantee programs and identifies opportunities to increase each program's success, and quantifies and verifies the energy savings achieved through the programs' funded home energy improvements and the cost-effectiveness of those savings.

Author(s)
Institute for Electric Efficiency
Publication Date
This report summarizes ongoing and recent policy developments that support utility investments in energy efficiency, including program cost recovery, fixed cost recovery, and performance incentives for electric utilities on a state-by-state basis.
Author(s)
U.S. Department of Energy
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Atlanta SHINE,
Be SMART,
Beacon Communities Project,
BetterBuildings for Michigan,
BetterBuildings for Greensboro,
BetterBuildings Lowell Energy Upgrade,
Camden POWER - A Better Buildings Initiative,
CarrboroWISE,
City of Indianapolis Better Buildings Program,
Chapel Hill WISE,
CharlestonWISE,
Enhabit,
Community Alliance for Energy Efficiency (Cafe2),
Community Power Works,
Connecticut Neighbor to Neighbor Energy Challenge,
DecaturWISE,
Efficiency Maine,
emPowerSBC,
Energize Phoenix,
EnergyFit Nevada,
Energy Impact Illinois,
EnergySmart,
Energy Upgrade California,
EnergyWorks,
Fayette County Better Buildings Initiative,
Greater Cincinnati Energy Alliance (GCEA),
Huntsville WISE,
Local Energy Alliance Program (LEAP),
Michigan Saves,
Missouri Agricultural Energy Saving Team - A Revolutionary Opportunity (MAESTRO),
NeighborWorks H.E.A.T. Squad,
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA),
reEnergize,
RePower Kitsap,
RePower Bainbridge,
RePower Bremerton,
Richmond Regional Energy Alliance (RREA),
ShopSmart with JEA,
Solar and Energy Loan Fund (SELF),
Small Town Energy Program (STEP),
Wisconsin Energy Conservation Corporation (WECC),
Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance (SEEA)

This publication summarizes some of the incentives offered by Better Buildings Neighborhood Program partners.

Author(s)
U.S. Department of Energy
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Local Energy Alliance Program (LEAP),
BetterBuildings for Michigan

This peer exchange call summary focused on how programs are devising plans for creating a contractor revenue stream and potential fee structures.

Author(s)
Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships, Inc.
Publication Date

REED serves as a dashboard for the consistent reporting of electric and natural gas energy efficiency program energy and demand savings and associated costs, avoided emissions and job impacts across the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic region. REED is a project of NEEP's Regional Evaluation, Measurement and Verification Forum (EM&V Forum) and is based on the EM&V Forum's Common Statewide Energy Efficiency Reporting Guidelines.

Author(s)
Bonneville Power Administration
Publication Date

This report summarizes research assessing national and regional residential behavior-based energy efficiency (BBEE) programs and activities to identify best practices. The report emphasizes that a basic foundation for behavior change is providing energy consumers with feedback on their energy consumption, with customer engagement strategies and tactics employed to get customers to take action and drive greater levels of energy savings.

Author(s)
Environmental Finance Center at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Alabama Energy Revolving Loan Fund
This market assessment for the Alabama Energy Revolving Loan Fund identifies the customers and potential demand for an energy efficiency upgrade financing program.
Author(s)
National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency
Publication Date

This report presents best practices for operating successful portfolio-level efficiency programs, including assessing efficiency potential, cost-effectiveness screening, and developing a portfolio of approaches.

Author(s)
Consortium for Energy Efficiency
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Ameren Illinois Utilities,
Avista Utilities,
BC Hydro,
Cape Light Compact,
All-Electric Home Performance Tune-Up,
Efficiency Vermont,
New Jersey Natural Gas,
Northeast Utilities Home Energy Solutions,
New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA),
PSE&G Whole House Energy Efficiency Program,
Vectren Energy Delivery's Home Energy Savings Program,
Focus on Energy

This guide provides background on the home improvement market in the U.S. and Canada and end users and systems in existing homes, as well as a description of energy efficiency program approaches and strategies.

Author(s)
Alliance to Save Energy
Publication Date
Organizations or Programs
Texas LoanSTAR,
Kansas Energy Efficiency Program,
Keystone Home Energy Loan Program (HELP)
This brief focuses on loan programs in 30 states that are currently providing low- to no-interest loans to finance energy efficiency improvements--from energy-efficient windows to replacement HVAC systems--in the residential, business, and public sectors.