The City of Aspen encourages interested residents and businesses to increase the energy efficiency of homes and offices through rebates and incentives for single-family, multi-family, and commercial buildings. Rebates are available for heat pumps, solar photovoltaics, air sealing, insulation, heat pump water heaters, lighting, refrigerators, clothes dryers, and induction stoves. Custom rebates are available for incentives not specifically offered by the utility, but require pre-approval. The program also provides bonus rebates for certain eligible groups. More information on 2023 rebates can be found here.

Lower Valley Energy offers a variety rebates for residential customers who wish to increase the energy efficiency of eligible homes. Rebates are also available for commercial lighting measures and vary based on kWh savings. Visit the program website for more information.

In April 2009, Los Angeles enacted Ordinance 180636, known as the Green Building Retrofit Ordinance. This ordinance was later amended by Ordinance 182259. The law requires all city-owned buildings that are either more than 7,500 square feet or built before 1978 to be retrofitted. The goal of the retrofits will be to achieve LEED for Existing Buildings Silver certification or higher. This requirement is subject to the availability of state or federal funds. The Ordinance requires that at least half of the buildings retrofitted are located in high-poverty and high-unemployment areas, and that, to the extent feasible, all construction

Four rural utility cooperatives in Eastern Kentucky (Big Sandy RECC, Fleming-Mason RECC, Grayson RECC, and Jackson Energy) work with MACED to provide energy retrofits as part of utility service under the KY Energy Retrofit Rider. The program, How$martKY, addresses a barrier that households and small businesses face when making an up-front investment in energy efficiency improvements such as insulation, air-sealing and HVAC upgrades.

Rather than paying for energy conservation measures up-frot, How$martKY allows customers to make installment payments as part of their monthly utility bills, gradually paying for the efficiency upgrades by using part of the energy savings generated by

New York City passed Resolution 1121 in August 2005 (effective December 1, 2005) to exempt residential solar energy systems equipment and services from sales tax.

Builders with new construction projects in NW Natural’s Washington gas service territory are eligible to receive cash incentives from Energy Trust of Oregon for gas heated homes that receive Energy Star or Earth Advantage certification. Starting in February, 2016 an Energy Performance Score (EPS) incentive will be available for all newly built homes heated by NW Natural. Builders are also eligible to receive an incentive for installing a tank water heater. For more information on the incentive program for builders, see the program web site.

In March 2006, Wisconsin enacted Act 141 (2005), which requires the Wisconsin Public Service Commission (WPSC) to revise goals, priorities, and measurable targets for energy efficiency programs every 4 years.  Funding is provided by ratepayers to the utilities' statewide energy efficiency program (Focus on Energy) in order to achieve these goals, with the funding levels increasing each year. Utilities are required to spend 1.2% of annual operating revenues to fund both energy efficiency and renewable energy programs. 

Energy Efficiency Goals 

Energy efficiency goals are through the Quadrennial Planning Process through the WPSC. 

The most recent Quadrennial Planning Process revised the

Duluth Comfort Systems offers a loan program for homeowners to increase the energy efficiency of homes located within the city. Loans are available for insulation, air sealing, furnace replacements, water heaters, lighting improvements, and certain appliances. Contact Duluth Comfort Systems regarding the eligibility of other improvements not listed here. An energy audit must be performed on participating homes in order to identify needed upgrades. The maximum loan is $30,000 for an owner occupied house and $15,000 per rental unit for non-owner occupied or multi-unit properties. All loans must be repaid within 10 years of project commencement. Only residents of Duluth

Permitting Rules

In September 2009, the Governor of Wisconsin signed S.B. 185 (Act 40) directing the Wisconsin Public Service Commission (PSC) to establish statewide wind energy siting rules. PSC Docket 1-AC-231 was created to conduct the rulemaking, requiring the PSC to convene an advisory council composed of various interested stakeholders (e.g. developers, political subdivisions, environmental groups, landowners, etc.). In December 2010, the Commission adopted the wind siting rules (PSC 128). The rules were scheduled to take effect on March 1, 2011, but on that date, the Joint Committee for the Review of Administrative Rules voted to suspend the rules. The

In July 2008, New Hampshire enacted legislation designed to prevent municipalities from adopting ordinances or regulations that place unreasonable limits on or hinder the performance of wind energy systems up to 100 kilowatts (kW) in capacity. Such wind turbines must be used primarily to produce energy for on-site consumption. The law identifies several possible restrictions that would be considered unreasonable:

• The outright prohibition of small wind turbines (i.e., wind turbines up to 100 kW) in all districts of a municipality.
• Generic height restrictions that do not specifically address the allowable tower height or system height of small wind turbines.
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