Equity Metrics and Workforce Development

No policy is in place. However, the state has sources of funding to support programs that advance energy efficiency in low-income and environmental justice communities, such as VEEP, and RE-VEEP.

Workforce Development

AEA sponsored a class for teachers that focused on alternative energy and energy efficiency. The participants received college credit for participating. This was completed in partnership with Alaska Resource Education.

Last Reviewed: November 2024

At this time, the state has not taken specific steps to engage with marginalized groups in the community for the creation or implementation of its energy, sustainability, or climate action plan.

The DOE Weatherization Assistance Program tracks houses weatherized by county. One of the priorities for weatherizing low-income households is energy burden (> 6% of household income spent on energy).

The Arkansas Energy Office (AEO) administers various programs that aim to benefit low-income and underserved communities, such as the Weatherization Assistance Program and the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). These programs involve community outreach and engagement to ensure that eligible households are aware of and can access the available resources.

Last Reviewed: November 2024

Colorado WAP is running a pilot program to install air source heat pumps. This pilot will help WAP clients with electrification both now via direct install and in the future once the pace of electrification and its impacts on energy rates are better understood.

Recent legislation for different planning or technology areas (demand side management, beneficial electrification, distributed generation) requires at least a certain percentage of utility expenditures be directed towards income qualified households, with the intention of increasing access and providing greater direct benefits. Legislation also requires consideration of or cost mitigation to income qualified households and Disproportionately Impacted Communities (DICs) in other emerging areas of planning and regulation. Additionally, one utility, Xcel Energy, agreed to convene stakeholders following an electric rate case to develop a consensus estimate of its energy burden customers and identify solutions to reduce energy burden for vulnerable households. Work began in 2024 and is ongoing.

CEO outreach and engagement staff have been working on increasing audience reach by attending community events throughout the year and the state targeting DICs to inform community members about residential energy saving opportunities offer by CEO. Staff continue on ongoing efforts to build relationships and partner with community-based organizations and media outlets to reach the communities experiencing energy burden.

Workforce Development

The heat pump pilot program will likely lead to significant heat pump expertise development within both Colorado WAP and also across the state. Colorado has a low level of heat pump expertise as a result of historically low level of air conditioning system installation and repair. This low level of air conditioning expertise leads to a lack of knowledge of refrigerant-based cooling and heating systems; as a result, Colorado has a steeper learning curve than other states when it comes to heat pump installation. The WAP air source heat pump pilot will assist in electrification workforce development.

CEO is working closely with utilities such as Xcel Energy, Tri-State Generation & Transmission, Holy Cross Energy, Platte River Power Authority, and other organizations such as the Energy Efficiency Business Coalition as part of the Beneficial Electrification League of Colorado, to coordinate and promote heat pump contractor training across the state. CEO has also funded webinars to raise awareness of heat pump technologies and their benefits.

Additionally, CEO provides funding to a nonprofit, Energy Smart Colorado, to provide partial scholarships to individuals to obtain or maintain a BPI or RESNET certification and who work in rural, mountain, or other underserved areas of the State. The funding also pays for small grants for individuals to purchase or maintain energy testing equipment needed for energy assessments or ratings.

Last Reviewed: July 2021

Delaware published its first Climate Action Plan in 2021. The Plan outlines how the State of Delaware will drive reductions of the greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change and better prepare Delaware for its many impacts, from increasing temperatures to sunny day flooding and sea level rise. Developed hand-in-hand with residents, business leaders, and local governments, the plan contains strategies that fit the unique needs and desires of Delaware’s constituents. The strategies, goals, and policy recommendations included in the plan use equity-related metrics and methods for protecting Delaware’s most vulnerable populations from the effects of climate change.   Implementation of the the action plan has began. The next phase of the project includes developing a implementation metrics tracking/reporting tool that will be published on the DNREC website to show Delaware's progress towards implementing the actions and strategies in the plan. This step is expected to include a data dashboard that will track progress towards implementing the action plan goals, including the equity related actions. To lower energy burdens of low-income households, one action specified in the climate plan is to collaborate with the Public Service Commission and other stakeholders to consider a graduated rate structure (e.g., a lower rate for electricity for income-qualified ratepayers). Another important action to ease historical energy burden faced by these underserved households includes expanding opportunities to provide solar systems to low- and moderate- income residents and communities through efforts including community solar projects and targeted incentive programs.  

Delaware launched a Low- to Moderate-Income Solar Pilot Program in 2022 using grant funding to promote renewable energy use across the state

Public participation has been central to developing Delaware’s Climate Action Plan. In addition to public workshops, online surveys, and comment forms soliciting public input, DNREC sought insight from Delaware-based technical stakeholders in the buildings, electric power, industrial transportation and waste sectors — along with staff from 10 state agencies — on potential actions to minimize greenhouse gas emissions and maximize resilience to climate change impacts. Input received from all the community engagement activities will help inform Delaware’s Climate Action Plan, which is set for release in winter 2021. Summaries of these activities, and the input received, are included below.

Public Participation Highlights:

• More than 250 people participated in an initial round of public workshops, held in each county in March.
• A follow-up series of virtual workshops held in September and October attracted nearly 390 attendees across five sessions.
• Online surveys hosted on this website in the spring and fall, aimed at gathering input from those unable to attend a public workshop, garnered more than 520 responses.
• Residents, businesses, and organizations submitted more than 50 additional written comments and questions on the plan.

Recordings, reports, and other materials from all the community engagement efforts are documented on the DE Climate Action Plan webpage.

The Delaware WAP is working on a project that will track high energy use and high energy burden clients served by the program so the data can be reported to the U.S. DOE.

Workforce Development

The state's energy plans or electrification strategies do not currently include specific measures to prioritize clean energy workforce development.

Last Reviewed: November 2024

The FDACS Office of Energy incorporates equity in as many programs as possible. The Florida Wastewater Treatment Plant Energy Program was developed to advance the energy-water nexus. In addition to reducing energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, the FDACS Office of Energy achieves energy equity through investing in projects to reduce consumer energy consumption and costs to Florida consumers. The Florida Wastewater Treatment Plant Energy Program considers factors that reduce energy consumption and costs to treat wastewater.

The Florida Energy Systems Consortium (FESC) (§1004.648 F.S.), administered by the FDACS Office of Energy, offers public engagement opportunities to all Florida communities. The FESC works with Florida's academic and research institutions, and the public to address energy issues. FESC focuses on advancing energy research and technology and providing consumers access to energy conservation programs through the Florida Energy Clearinghouse and My Florida Home Energy websites.

Workforce Development

The FDACS Office of Energy promotes workforce development at all stages of learning. Currently, the FDACS Office of Energy supports K-12 education in clean energy by providing Energy Education Kits to schools that are designed to develop teamwork and problem-solving abilities, investigate environmental issues and gain hands-on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) skills. The FDACS Office of Energy works with the Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) to support their EnergyWhiz Events which occurs every year in May and regularly attracts over 1,000 students, parents, and volunteers. The FDACS Office of Energy assists with event judging and provides event sponsorship. Another organization supported by the FDCAS Office of Energy that has its second annual events this summer is the American Association of Blacks in Energy that holds the Youth Energy Academy. It is a virtual two-day event in four regions throughout Florida for career exploration through interactive hands-on activities and engaging discussions designed to expose young people to careers in electric utility industries and related fields.

Last Updated: November 2024

The Inflation Reduction Act is funding energy efficiency rebate and contractor training programs that target low- and moderate-income residents and underserved/disadvantaged communities. Hawaii's allocation for the Home Efficiency Rebate Programs (50121 and 50122) is nearly $70 million. Contractor training programs that support these initiatives are targeting potential workers that live in these communities with the intention of providing high-quality wages that lift economic conditions. 

The Hawaiʻi State Energy Office (HSEO) currently sponsors one member from the Hawaiʻi State Climate Commission’s Climate Ready Hawaiʻi AmeriCorps VISTA six-member cohort. In 2019, the Climate Commission established a Permitted Interaction Group (PIG) to investigate how climate change impacts inequities within Hawaiʻi. As a result, the PIG tasked the VISTA members to evaluate how energy, sustainability, and climate action initiatives within Hawaiʻi are affecting local low-to-moderate income and marginalized groups through the development of an equity playbook. HSEO AmeriCorps members assisted in the development of the energy and transportation equity sections of the playbook, which include definitions, frameworks, and examples of climate equity within Hawaiʻi. The energy component of this playbook discusses energy burden, energy efficiency, and renewable energy as they relate to equity.

Additionally, a former HSEO VISTA prepared a literature review of available climate and social vulnerability indices and energy burden tools useful for Hawaiʻi, as requested by the PIG, to help the State understand who the most vulnerable and marginalized communities are within the State and where they are geographically located. Examples of reviewed indices and energy burden tools include the CDC’s Social Vulnerability Index, United for ALICE’s County Profile tool, the Department of Energy’s Low-Income Energy Affordability Data (LEAD) tool, and Greenlink Analytic’s Greenlink Equity Map (GEM) tool.

These projects will contribute to the State’s baseline understanding of, and capacity to address, the most marginalized and vulnerable communities within Hawaiʻi as it combats climate change and transitions to a clean energy economy.

More information: Climate Commission’s PIG’s Scope of Work

In 2022 the State adopted House Resolution 44 "requesting the Public Utilities Commission, in collaboration with the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs' Division of Consumer Advocacy, to convene a working group to create a Hawaii Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program to assist low-income households with paying for their home energy".

Workforce Development

The Hawai'i State Energy Office’s (HSEO) Workforce Development Initiative (WDI) is identifying workforce needs in Hawai'i’s energy sector in order to efficiently and materially/scalably deploy workforce development funding, when available, to support and develop a Hawai'i workforce in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and clean transportation.

Since the simultaneous development and installation of several utility-scale solar projects is a new opportunity in Hawai'i, an initial activity was to identify demand- and supply-side factors affecting these projects, potential workers and/or skill shortages, and value-added trainings or educational curriculum that could effectively and more efficiently address these issues. Subsequent efforts will expand the scope to other energy technologies (efficiency, electric vehicles and charging, energy storage) and state and county regulatory agencies.

A related effort, which has concluded, involved training by the University of Hawai'i Community Colleges (UHCC) for county agencies that regulate clean energy installations. Over 260 county employees were trained under the program. Funding was provided by the Hawai'i State Legislature through HSEO under Act 145, Session Laws of Hawai'i 2019. The continuation and expansion of the program is now being pursued.

Last Reviewed: November 2024

IEDA supported a High Performance Home Plan project to provide an energy efficient home plan based on Iowa's climate and building codes to serve as a model for Community Development Block Grant projects funded by the state.  IEDA provided funding to the Prison Industries Training Program, an effort to train incarcerated Iowans in construction, with an emphasis on energy efficiency and high performing homes.

Workforce Development

The State Energy Plan has four pillars, one of which is Economic Development and Energy Careers. The objective of this pillar is to Increase the local talent pool for energy-related careers while promoting employment and training opportunities in the energy sector. There are two goals under the objective: Accelerate and Elevate Energy Sector Partnership Efforts; and Build Robust Career Pathways to High-Demand Occupational Needs. In an effort to prepare for a shrinking energy workforce with a growing energy demand, the Iowa Energy Workforce Consortium was organized by Iowa utilities with the purpose of bringing industry experts together to discuss and collaborate. To capture the full scope of the industry and utilize all parties that make up the workforce pipeline, the consortium also asked state agencies and community colleges to be a part of the discussion. These stakeholders meet regularly so they can continue to evolve with the changing workforce and keep a pulse on the needs of the industry.

Last Reviewed: November 2024

Maine is a participating state in the regional carbon cap-and-trade program known as RGGI. As part of its Triennial Plan for FY2023-FY2025, Efficiency Maine allocated 12% of its FY2023 RGGI revenues to its Low Income Initiatives to fund primarily home weatherization projects and heat pump water heater retrofits. When the Maine Jobs and Recovery Plan (and the corresponding legislation LD 1733 - An Act To Provide Allocations for the Distribution of State Fiscal Recovery Funds) allocated $25 million in ARPA funds to EMT to support weatherization of low- and moderate-income homes, EMT backfilled the Low Income Initiatives budget and redirected RGGI funds to its other programs.

As part of its Triennial Plan for FY2023-2025, Efficiency Maine established program budgets that reflect the minimum funding allocations to low-income customers set forth in statute [see 35-A MRS §10110(2)(B)] and 35-A MRS §10111(1)(B)] and rule [see 95-648 Code of Maine Rules (CMR) ch. 3, §3(A)(2) and 95-648 CMR ch. 4, §3(2)]. For the Electric Efficiency Procurement (electric ratepayer funds) this allocation is 10%. For the Natural Gas Conservation Fund (natural gas ratepayer funds), this allocation is set at a reasonable percentage considering low-income consumers' share of gas load and the cost-effective opportunity available at their homes. For RGGI funds, the target allocation to low-income programs is generally around 10%. However, as mentioned above, when EMT received a significant influx of federal funding from the American Rescue Plan Act ($25 million) to support weatherization of low- and moderate-income homes, it redirected low-income RGGI funds to its other programs.

In 2019, the Maine Legislature passed LD 1766 - An Act To Transform Maine's Heat Pump Market To Advance Economic Security and Climate Objectives, establishing a goal to install 100,000 additional high-efficiency heat pumps over five years by 2025. The bill required the Maine State Housing Authority to include information in its annual planning process (for low-income weatherization programs) on targets and budgets related to the heat pump goal. Efficiency Maine also offered enhanced heat pump rebates for low- and moderate- income households. Through the combined efforts of these agencies, Maine met this goal two years ahead of schedule in 2023. The Governor then established a second goal of installing another 175,000 additional heat pumps in Maine by 2027. In 2020, the state's climate action plan ("Maine Won't Wait: A Four-Year Plan for Climate Action") built on this momentum, establishing a goal of having at least 115,000 households in the state wholly heated by heat pumps and an additional 130,000 households in the state partially heated by heat pumps by 2030. It also called for at least 15,000 new heat pumps in income-eligible households by 2025. The climate action plan also recommended doubling the current pace of home weatherization so that 17,500 additional homes and buisnesses are weatherized by 2025, including at least 1,000 low-income units per year. The state is tracking progress towards these goals on the Climate Action Plan dashboard - see https://www.maine.gov/climateplan/dashboard.

Efficiency Maine allocates funds from the Volkswagen Settlement and the New England Clean Energy Connect (NECEC) settlement specifically for disproportionately underserved communities in Maine to receive enhanced rebates for level 2 charging stations. These investments are targeted in areas that are especially rural where there is a higher upfront cost. Efficiency Maine also allocates at least 40% of its National Electric Vehcile Infrastructure (NEVI) Program funds for EV charging stations to disadvantaged communities per the federal Justice40 requirements. Efficiency Maine funding received through a settlement related to the New England Clean Energy Connect project includes dedicated resources for low- and moderate-income households for heat pumps, heat pump water heaters, weatherization, and electric vehicle rebates. Efficiency Maine tracks progress toward these investment goals and reports on them in its Annual Reports (available at https://www.efficiencymaine.com/about/library/reports/) 

All of the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) and LIHEAP-Weatherization funds administered by MaineHousing are dedicated to low-income Mainers who meet the criteria for LIHEAP eligibility. The funds are allocated pro-rata across the nine regions served by CAP agencies in the state. In 2021, MaineHousing initiated a Cultural Advisory Board to provide feedback and recommendations for all our programs, in an effort to ensure equitable access and benefit to the communities they serve. Included in this group are organizations that serve Native Americans and immigrants from many cultural backgrounds. MaineHousing reviews the recommendations from this group to make decisions on programmatic changes that would better serve these communities. The goal for the SERC grant is to install 1,060 Heat Pumps to contribute towards Maine's Climate Action Plan goals. Using the BIL and DOE funds, MaineHousing plans to weatherize 125 multifamily units. Weatherization activities are full building envelope based on energy modeling.

Efficiency Maine has increased its engagement of low- to moderate-income customers and small businesses through targeted outreach regarding enhanced incentives for heat pumps and weatherization. For Low Income Initiatives, Efficiency Maine holds quarterly stakeholder advisory group meetings to engage organizations who serve low income households. Efficiency Maine invites nonprofit groups, native American representatives, state government and utility staff. The purpose of this meeting is to increase engagement with low-income Mainers. Under Low Income Initiatives, Efficiency Maine sends outreach material directly to eligible individuals as well as uses targeted digital ads and area-specific radio spots to broaden the reach. The program manager supplements these efforts with presentations to towns and affordable housing association members. For the Small Business Initiative, Efficiency Maine conducts targeted marketing and outreach efforts to reach small businesses, including direct mail and phone calls to eligible businesses; collaboration with local groups such as Climate to Thrive, The Nature Conservancy, and chambers of commerce; and public relations activities targeted at eligible participants. Another means of engagement come from the network of trade allies called Qualified Partners. These independent businesses are the primary marketers of the program—working with their existing customers and identifying new customers for energy-efficient equipment. For businesses that do not currently work with a contractor or a Qualified Partner, the Efficiency Maine website features an online search tool to easily put potential customers in touch with a Qualified Partner in their area. The Program Managers for Electric Vehicle Initiatives engage with the aforementioned quarterly advisory group, the Maine Climate Council Equity Subcommittee, and the Maine Affordable Housing Coalition to gather insight and raise awareness about low-income EV rebates and charging infrastructure opportunities. 

The Community Resilience Partnership assists communities to reduce carbon emissions, transition to clean energy, and become more resilient to climate change effects such as extreme storms, flooding, rising sea levels, public health impacts, and more through grants and techical assistance. A key component to reach these goals is to ensure that Maine’s climate response includes shared benefits across diverse populations of Maine people. Community Resilience Partnership grant applicants are asked to include robust community engagement in their action grant proposals. Knowing that climate change impacts will create the greatest hardships for already marginalized communities, communities must identify and promote solutions to help the people who are most vulnerable to climate impacts. Grant applicants are scored on their community engagement strategy and how the potential benefits of their proposed climate action project are distributed equitably. In addition, the Community Resilience Partnerhip awards addtional points to proposals from communities that score HIGH on Maine’s Social Vulnerability Index or are small in size, and therefore have limited capacity and resources.   

The Governor's Energy Office has also established the Clean Energy Partnership program to coordinate action and engagement accross government, industry, academia, and community partners to support the clean energy and energy efficiency industries in Maine. The CEP is led by GEO in partnership with the Governor’s Office of Policy Innovation and the Future (GOPIF), the Maine Department of Labor (MDOL), and the Maine Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD). Other partners include the Maine Community College System, the University of Maine system, MaineHousing and Community Action Programs, private companies, labor unions, nonprofits, municipalities, and State and local chambers of commerce, among many others.The CEP Advisory Group includes representatives from industry, labor, support organizations, training and educational institutions, and state government, and helps guide CEP program development and implementation. This work includes defining workforce needs, monitoring progress, advising adjustments, and designing future program development. Since the CEP was established in 2022, the Advisory Group has met on a quarterly basis. A list of Advisory Group members can be found on the GEO website. 

The GEO also made specific outreach efforts to gather input from key labor stakeholders. GEO staff meets regularly with industry associations and union representatives from construction crafts to discuss current capacity to train energy efficiency workers. The CEP also regularly engages with Career and Technical instructors and directors, and has convened focus groups and ad-hoc meetings at CTE centers across the state. The CEP integrates feedback from labor, community, and education partners into program design for existing and new programs to maximize benefits to community members.

Workforce Development

In order to support the increased demand for heat pumps and to promote quality installations, Efficiency Maine specified a curriculum for registered trainers that support heat pump installers and developed a training module on "heat pump basics" that is required for all heat pump installers working with Efficiency Maine's residential programs. Efficiency Maine provides other trainings and workshops to contractors working in its commercial programs and has started delivering building code training to contractors. Efficiency Maine's intent to continue these efforts is reflected in its new Triennial Plan (for Fiscal Years 2023-2025).

In 2022, the Maine Governor's Energy Office launched the Clean Energy Partnership to advance Maine’s clean energy, economic development, and workforce goals as outlined in the state climate action plan, Maine Won't Wait. The primary goal that the Clean Energy Partnership intends to achieve is to more than double Maine's clean energy workforce to 30,000 by 2030. This goal has an auxiliary effect of helping achieve additional climate goals such as heat pump adoptions and weatherization. The purpose of the Clean Energy Partnership is to prepare, expand, and support Maine’s clean energy workforce as well as supporting innovation of clean tech products and services. This initiative is supported by the Maine Jobs and Recovery Plan, innovation funds, and additional funding sources designated for bolstering this effort (e.g., Congressionally Designated Spending, etc.).

Last Reviewed: November 2024

Carbon Pricing Policies

Massachusetts participates in RGGI; however, because low-income energy efficiency is well funded through utility ratepayer programs, the 2019 Supplemental Budget bill (ch. 142 of the Acts of 2019, §95) required RGGI proceeds to be directed to rebates for electric vehicles and the Green Communities Program.  It is important to note that this did not decrease budgets for low and moderate income energy efficiency - pursuant to Section 11 of the Massachusetts Green Communities Act  of 2008 (MGLc 25, section 19c), at least 10% of money spent on electric energy efficiency programs and at least 20% of the money spent on gas energy efficiency programs must be spent on low income customers.  In fact, budgets have increased significantly in those areas.  For example, In the 2022-2024 Energy Efficiency Plan, over $550 million is dedicated to low income programs (serving households making 60% or less of state median income) that pay 100% of the costs for cost-effective energy efficiency measures, including barrier mitigation and health and safety upgrades needed to install energy efficiency. In addition, the Plan invests $136 million to serve moderate-income (61%-80% of the state median income) customers, including a moderate-income offer of 100% incentive for weatherization and enhanced incentives for heating systems for customers who income qualify, with higher incentives for efficient electric heating compared to fossil fuel equipment, and introduction of new incentives for pre-weatherization barrier mitigation. 

Goals

In addition, the mechanism by which Massachusetts utilities receive shareholder performance incentives for achievement of energy efficiency goals was restructured in the 2022-2024 Energy Efficiency Plan to set specific targets for EJ communities and set aside performance incentive funds that can only be earned if benefits and investments increase in these communities compared to historic levels.  Benefits in EJ communities are incentivized at a higher rate than non-EJ communities. The 2025-2027 performance incentives are currently being developed and will continue to incentivize investment to underserved customers, including LMI customers, renters, and small businesses.  

Interagency Cumulative Impact Workgroup - In light of the mandates specified by the new statute, Chapter 8 of the Acts of 2021, an Act Creating a Next Generation Road Map for Massachusetts Climate Policy, the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) has convened an inter-agency work group to define and develop a standardized methodology to assess cumulative impacts of environmental burdens over time with regard to environmental justice populations. The immediate goals of this workgroup, to be further refined through subsequent meetings, is the following: (1) identify which pollution sources and social determinants of health should be considered while assessing cumulative impacts, and (2) develop a quantitative method by which cumulative impacts can be measured, such that state agencies may utilize this information in permitting, siting, grant disbursement, enforcement and other state functions. 

In addition, on January 4, 2024, the MA DPU opened an investigation into energy affordability in the state.  D.P.U. 24-15: Notice of Inquiry by the Department of Public Utilities on its own Motion into Energy Burden with a Focus on Energy Affordability for Residential Ratepayers.

Community Engagement

Approaches might include advisory councils, collaboratives, working groups, or a state agency office that act as points of contact to engage with marginalized groups and consult with environmental justice organizations. Note that simply having a task force is not enough to earn credit. Below are some criteria we are looking for:  

• The majority of the group or task force is made up of members from historically marginalized communities or organizations. 
• The group or task force is currently active and striving to achieve increased engagement with marginalized communities, or other relevant goals set by the task force or group. 
• The group or task force is affecting or influencing state policies, programs, or plans or has the power to do so (e.g., their powers are spelled out in a law or ordinance). 

• In 2020, MassCEC began updating its existing Clean Energy Internship Program (which recently celebrated placement of 5000 students over 9 years in internships) to increase diversity in the clean energy workforce. Beginning in 2021, MassCEC began reserving 20% of its internship spots for employers in Gateway Cities and/or students in Gateway Cities. In addition, starting with summer of 2021, MassCEC has hired four (4) training providers to recruit, support, and mentor underrepresented student populations in the MassCEC Clean Energy Internship program to further boost diversity of participants. The providers matched students with companies and developed workshops for underrepresented students during their internships.  
• The Massachusetts Vocational Internship Program (VIP) is a workforce development initiative offered through the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC). The Program enhances the talent pipeline for Massachusetts clean energy companies and places skilled labor from vocational high schools in paid clean energy internships during the academic year.   
• In addition to its internship programs, MassCEC hosts an online job board with multiple listings for private and non-profit clean energy industry job opportunities.   
• In March 2022, MassCEC issued a solicitation (total funding $4.5 million) or programs that support the expansion of minority and women owned businesses in clean energy and climate-critical sectors. This solicitation will be re-opened every six months.   
• In 2021, MassCEC published a report on the status of the Building Operations sector of the MA economy. The report outlines the current status of this workforce, including demographics, training needs (both short and long term), and career pathways. The report will guide MassCEC in preparing for future workforce programs. MassCEC is continuing this work in 2022 by conducting a broader Workforce Needs Analysis for all Climate Critical Occupations that will outline the current status of this workforce, including demographics, training needs (both short and long term), and career pathways. The analysis and subsequent report will provide a framework of industry needs and training gaps of climate critical occupations, and also highlight workforce best practices associated with supporting clean energy minority and women owned businesses, engaging and supporting residents in environmental justice neighborhoods, and current and former fossil fuel workers to join the clean energy industry. The report will inform MassCEC’s future workforce development strategy and program development efforts, particularly with respect to meeting Massachusetts’s aggressive 2030 GHG emissions targets.   
• Building on the 2018 Workforce Assessment and to further examine the workforce required to complete the first 1,600 megawatts of Massachusetts offshore wind (the Vineyard Wind and Mayflower Wind projects), MassCEC commissioned the 2021 Offshore Wind Workforce Training & Development in Massachusetts Report, developed by BW Research Partnership, which provides a deeper examination of capabilities and opportunities in the offshore wind workforce.   
• In July of 2021, MassCEC announced awards to eight organizations under the Access to Opportunity in the Offshore Wind Workforce solicitation, which focused exclusively on building a more equitable offshore wind workforce from the ground up and increasing awareness of potential job opportunities. To inform the funding opportunity, MassCEC engaged with critical groups and sought stakeholder feedback on how to effectively support programs that aim to increase the participation of underrepresented populations and/or target communities in the developing offshore wind workforce and reduce barriers for individuals interested in pursuing offshore wind job opportunities.   

• Workforce Equity Training Programs planning grants. This opportunity provides $50,000 Planning Grants for partnerships of organizations serving environmental justice neighborhoods to develop a workforce training plans aimed at training residents for priority occupations and working with employers to hire or apprentice trainees. 
• Minority and Women Owned Business Enterprises (MWBE) Support. This Program was authorized for $4.5 million, and will provide grants between $250,000 and $1 million for organizations to support Massachusetts-based MWBE companies in their entry, creation, and expansion into fields that are critical to meeting the 

• Through the Clean Energy Pathways Program (a program designed to increase opportunities in the clean energy workforce for individuals historically underrepresented in the industry), over the three years, at least 120 people will complete training and be placed in clean energy industry positions. Of the goal of 120 people, the goal is that at least 90 people are Women, Black, Indigenous, or People of Color, fluent in language(s) other than English, and/or from EJ block groups at time of enrollment.     
• The Plan includes annual tracking and reporting on the number of M/WBEs contracts and spend for contracts that are directly between PAs and vendors that are M/WBEs. 
•  In 2022, an EM&V study will be completed  to analyze whether substantial disparities exist between the availability and Mass Save utilization of state-certified minority and woman-owned business enterprises (M/WBE) in procurement for lead vendors and subcontractors by the Massachusetts Program Administrators (statewide and individually) related to energy efficiency programs and services. 
• Program Adminstrators (PA) will hold at least two workshops per year for contractors interested in working in Mass Save to provide education on programs in order to increase ability of new M/WBE vendors to participate; PAs to target advertising for the workshop to likely M/WBE contractors.   
• At least once per year, the PAs will perform direct targeted outreach to all Massachusetts-certified M/WBEs listed in the Massachusetts Supplier Diversity Office’s Directory of Certified Businesses with a Description of Services that indicates that they provide services or equipment that are likely eligible for Mass Save contracts, subcontracts, or incentives. A description of the outreach methods and number and types of businesses contacted will be reported annually.   

Last Reviewed: November 2024

A major role in Minnesota’s Climate Action Framework is decreasing energy inequities across Minnesota. One of the goals established in the Framework is to weatherize 25% of residences earning fifty percent or less than the MN median income by 2030. Another goal is to reduce the energy burden so that spending on energy is less than 5% of the income of 80% of Minnesotans.

To help ensure that low-income customers have the opportunity to participate in ECO programs, Minnesota Statutes §216B.241, subd. 7(a) establishes minimum low-income spending requirements for electric and natural gas utilities and associations.  E.g. the minimum low-income spending requirement for public (i.e., investor-owned) is equal to 0.4% of gas IOUs’ three-year average residential GOR and 0.2% of electric IOUs’ three-year average residential GOR.

Many ECO low-income programs (most of which by design are intended to exclusively serve the needs of low-income persons) have tended not to be cost-effective, but the Department has historically not held low-income programs to the same cost-effectiveness standards as non-low income programs, and has allowed non-cost-effective low-income programs to be included in utility ECO portfolios recognizing their importance in serving these customers.  

The MN Department of Commerce also commissioned a 3-year study to evaluate the effectiveness of low-income program delivery through the conservation improvement program. The study assessed the current performance of the utility LI ECO programs and identified opportunities for increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of those programs. Overall, the study found that the LI ECO is meeting or exceeding most of the statutory and regulatory requirements.

In advance of investor-owned utilities (IOU) filing their 2024-2026 ECO Triennial Plans, the Department worked with Minnesota Energy Efficiency For All (MN EEFA) to host a series of sessions focused on low-income ECO programs. The meetings were designed to give interested parties opportunities to provide feedback on the utilities’ planned low-income programs prior to the utilities submitting their final proposed plans to the Department for formal regulatory review.This process was referred to as “Phase I” of the ECO Low-Income Working Group. Recordings of the Phase I sessions are available on Fresh Energy’s website (https://fresh-energy.org/event/conservation-improvement-program-cip-planning-for-low-income-kick-off). In 2024, the Department is working to establish a permanent ECO Low-Income Working Group to address ECO issues specific to “under-resourced customers, multifamily housing properties, renters, and others currently underserved by energy efficiency programming in Minnesota. 

In 2024 Minnesota passed funding for the Department of Commerce to provide technical, policy, and stakeholder engagement assistance to the Tribal Advocacy Council for Energy (TACE). TACE is made up of members from the 11 Tribal Nations whose boarders are within Minnesota. This funding allows the department to work alongside the Tribal Nations in support of energy solutions and requires the hiring of a Tribal liaison.  (https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?b=senate&f=sf4942&ssn=0&y=2024)     

Additionally, the Minnesota Department of Commerce has funded several studies to learn how to increase the efficacy of the ECO program, including the following:

Analysis of New or Modified Energy Efficiency Programs to Increase Energy Savings of Underserved Populations: This project  engaged underserved, high needs Twin Cities’ communities in a co-creative process to identify their unique barriers to participation in energy efficiency programs and the ways in which they can best be served. The project presents a set of energy efficiency program design best practices for providing culturally responsive energy efficiency services to historically underserved populations: renters, low-income households, and Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) in the Twin Cities. 

Opportunities for CIP to Support Tribal Food Sovereignty: This project uses the lens and framework of ECO to understand energy issues related to food sovereignty and resilience in Indigenous communities in Minnesota. The project includes a literature review, interviews with Indigenous food producers, and analysis of existing ECO offerings regarding how current ECO offerings can be used to support Indigenous producers. It discusses recommendations developed from the research on how ECO can support both energy savings and non-energy benefits generated through strengthened Tribal food systems.

Engaging Latinx Businesses in Electric Utility Efficiency Programs: The project goals are to:

• understand the implementation rates of commercial energy efficiency utility programs among Latinx-owned businesses in Minnesota;
• identify and document participation barriers;
• assess the potential to improve implementation rates throughout these communities; and
• work with business owners to increase understanding of existing program offerings and opportunities.

Energy Efficiency through the Conservation Improvement Program - Barriers and Opportunities for Native Nations: To better understand the existing barriers and opportunities for Native nations to invest in energy efficiency, this project engaged and collected feedback from each of the 11 Native nations in Minnesota as well as the utilities that serve them. Project goals:

• Identify the specific energy-efficiency needs of Tribal governments and members and the barriers to implementation of needed energy-efficiency improvements.
• Provide specific, actionable recommendations to develop successful ECO opportunities that serve the needs of Tribal governments and members.

Last Reviewed: November 2024

Division of Energy (DE) is in the early stages of the Missouri State Energy Planning (MoSEP) process and held a Virtual Energy Stakeholder Kickoff Workshop in October 2020. DE requested and received the participation of a representative from Consumers Council of Missouri in the meeting to represent the interests and needs of the low-income consumers in Missouri energy planning, who offered challenges low-income customers face including energy insecurity, service disconnections, and others. A value statement was developed based on stakeholder feedback received during the kickoff meeting that includes affordability and equity in access to energy resources, services and programs. DE is taking a regional approach to energy planning that will enable a greater level of granularity in the local goals and priorities included in the MoSEP process. The regional approach will allow community and organizational leaders of marginalized groups to have their interests and needs heard to a greater degree than might have been possible through a more generalized approach to energy planning.

The Missouri Energy Efficiency Advisory Collaborative, established by Missouri Public Service Commission rule and docketed under Case No. EW-2013-0519, includes a Low-Income Work Group that meets multiple times a year to specifically address low-income customers' energy efficiency needs. The work group meetings include a variety of stakeholders. In addition, the Missouri Public Service Commission rules at 4 CSR 240-20-094(3)(A)4 require that market potential studies, "Include an estimate of the achievable potential, regardless of cost-effectiveness, of energy savings from low-income demand-side programs. Energy savings from multi-family buildings that house low-income households may count toward this target."

Workforce Development

The Missouri State Energy Planning (MoSEP) process includes an initiative to create an energy training and installation program at a local vocational school in Southeast Missouri. Division of Energy (MoDNR-DE) staff are also monitoring the efforts by the Interagency Working Group (IWG) on Coal and Power Plant Communities, and staff attended Midwestern Governors Association meetings relate to power plant closures, including the subgroup for workforce and education. MoDNR-DE WAP staff are working to address the shortage of technical staff in the community action agencies around the state. MoDNR-DE is implementing a grant program to support small agriculture businesses' energy projects. MoDNR-DE is also developing an energy audit grant program for local government critical infrastructure (including public safety facilities, water and waste), public K-12 schools, public universities and colleges, public and private not-for-profit hospitals, small commercial/industrial operations, and multifamily properties. Reducing energy costs in public buildings will allow funds to be redirected to other needs, such as workforce development. MoDNR-DE continues to offer its Energy Loan Program (ELP) to public entities to reduce energy costs. During the COVID pandemic, MoDNR-DE offered loans with interest rates of 1.75%, lower than the average program rate of approximately 3.67%.

Last Reviewed: November 2024

NH DOE administers the RGGI All Fuels funding proceeds for a moderate income energy efficiency programs. This program, administered by NHSaves, works with households that do not qualify for WAP or HEA programs, up to 300% of federal poverty, but are still in need of financial assistance to meet required cost shares for the utility funded programs. The current program contract ends at the end of 2024.

The Home Energy Assistance (HEA) Program provides energy efficiency improvements specifically for the low-income customers. The program serves single family and multi-family units. Utilities partner with NH’s Community Action Agencies to deliver program services. These agencies also deliver services through the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s Weatherization Assistance Program so are well positioned to deliver needed energy efficiency services along with health and safety measures which may include heating system and indoor air quality issues. Per Settlement Agreement, the HEA program's budget is 17 percent of the total plan budget. Any unused monies in the HEA program carry forward to the next year. In addition. RSA 374-F:3, VI, signed into law on September 26, 2019, provides "that no less than 20 percent of the portion of the [system benefit charge] funds collected for energy efficiency shall be expended on low-income energy efficiency programs." The 20 percent requirement is specific to the electric utilities.

We were unable to determine if the state has taken specific steps to engage with marginalized groups in the community for the creation or implementation of its energy, sustainability, or climate action plan.

Workforce Development

The state's utilities offer workforce training programs as part of the energy efficiency programs.

Last Reviewed: November 2024

The final supporting funds from a three-year Clean Energy States Alliance program on LMI efforts have been used to provide training supplies and tools for a LMI trades program at Northern New Mexico College. The college is located in the largest LMI community in the state, and supporting the trades program there is viewed as being a possible path for a brighter future for this community. The CESA program in New Mexico over the years of 2016 to 2019 developed the PV-on-a-Pole concept where a small system could be installed without using rooftop space or much ground space and still provide significant solar energy production for a low-income family. This concept has resonated with individuals both in state and out of state. The present largest effort for this type of solar sinstallation is in Humboldt County California. Also, the state is currently engaged in a statewide modeling effort (USDOE funded) to evaluate energy efficiency policies using a systems dynamic model. Results will show county impact levels. These results will be the first step in ensuring the LMI program(s) the state wants to pursue will have the desired impact on all residents, both rural and urban residents from all different income strata.

Workforce Development

The Economic Development Department did a statewide strategic plan that looks at nine industries (including clean energy) to look at short term recovery, long term planning, and economic diversification. This plan focuses on how to support businesses and develop the workforce.

Last Reviewed: September 2020

The state's Climate Risk Assessment and Resilience Plan offers climate justice recommendations for low income citizens that promote job creation and promote public health for the sector. The NC Energy Efficiency Roadmap addresses energy efficiency and demand-side management strategies for low and moderate income communities. The state's Clean Energy Plan addresses energy efficiency and clean energy programs specifically targeted at underserved markets and low-income communities. The 2018 NC Energy Policy Council Biennial Report includes recommendations for residential energy efficiency measures for low and moderate income consumers, including manufactured housing programs and weatherization assistance programs.

The Clean Energy and Clean Transportation in NC: A Workforce Assessment Plan recommends and prioritize actions to help NC develop skilled and educated workers for a clean energy economy. The NC Clean Energy Plan contains recommendations related to "Equitable Access and Just Transition, addressing methods to relieve the energy burden on low-income communities, provide job training, and develop a clean energy workforce. Various state agencies, college/universities and non-profits are taking actions identified in these recommendations.

Last Reviewed: July 2021

Oregon Dept. of Enviromental Quality's Climate Protection Program, which is a cap and reduce effort, provides a revenue stream for energy efficiency projects in low-income areas and Environmental Justic communities.

• Implementing a supplier diversity tracking system as outlined in the 2021 Budget and Action Plan.
• Developing a trade ally dashboard to track diverse spend in trade ally activities with stakeholder participation.
• Completing implicit bias training for all hiring managers.

• Energy Trust will come to the equity performance metrics discussions prepared to provide information requested by the Commission as outlined in the Budget related to:
  • Key communities by utility service territory
  •  Impact of alternative fuels, and
  • Low-cost cooling measure opportunities.
• Energy Trust shall conduct a minimum of four engagement activities with community organizations to present, refine and finalize Energy Trust goals for DEI Operations.  

Workforce Development

Oregon's Ten-Year Plan: Reducing the Energy Burden in Oregon Affordable Housing. Oregon Health and Community Service's (OHCS) Low-income Weatherization Program (LIWP) initiated a workforce development strategy to support the needs of low-income multifamily projects in Oregon. OHCS is completing a plan now for workforce development plans in Oregon, identifying the construction-related trades that need the most assistance, identifying geographic areas in Oregon needing the most assistance, and ways to best leverage current efforts to help address labor shortages in the trades.

House Bill (HB) 2021 establishes an ambitious emissions-based clean energy framework for electricity providers in Oregon. The bill requires the state’s large investor-owned utilities (IOUs), Pacific Power and Portland General Electric, and electricity service suppliers (ESSs) to decarbonize their retail electricity sales by 2040 in a manner that provides direct benefits to local communities to the extent practicable.

Section 26 of the bill outlines responsible contractor labor standards which includes establishing and executing a plan for outreach, recruitment and retention of women, minority individuals, veterans and people with disabilities to perform work under the contract, with the l target of having at least 15 percent of total work hours performed by individuals in one or more of those groups; and having policies in place that are designed to limit or prevent workplace harassment and discrimination and that promote workplace diversity, equity and inclusion for communities who have been underrepresented in the clean energy sector, including women, veterans and Black, Indigenous and People of Color.

Last Reviewed: November 2024

Cap-and-Trade

Rhode Island participates in the Regional Greenhouse Gas initiative, which is a cap-and-trade program, and uses the proceeds from RGGI auctions to fill market gaps, including energy efficiency programming to support Low Income and environmental Justice communities when possible. 

Goals

In late 2022 the Office of Energy Resources hired a new Energy Justice Manager focused on improving energy equity and integrating the Biden Administration’s Justice 40 initiative into all of OER's workstreams. The Energy Justice Manager co-hosts a regular public workshop on Climate Justice with the Department of Environmental Management’s Climate Justice Manager. These accessible workshops are held at locations throughout the state in order to provide residents from underserved, environmental and energy justice communities with opportunities provide input and perspective on policy and programming, as well as to learn about important energy and environmental issues while fostering improved engagement with communities around the state. Recommendations made by the Energy Justice Program Manager that have been implemented by OER include: equity focused on public participation protocols and guidance, updated data demonstrating energy burden in communities across Rhode Island, and the beginning of an effort to map current deployment of clean energy assets and investments, as can be seen in this map of electric vehicle charging stations in the State.                            

Other state reports and utility-based programming in Rhode Island have included targeted funding and recommendations to increase investment in sectors or areas serving marginalized communities. Thanks to the efforts of this position, the State and the utilities are making a concentrated effort to track the success and efficacy of these efforts and develop additional metrics, with significant community input, to evaluate how local marginalized groups are impacted by energy policy and programming. 

 Rhode Island's State Energy Plan - Energy 2035 establishes a number of policies that direct support towards low-income and underserved customers. Specifically, it charges the Department of Human Services to oversee the WAP and LIHEAP programs, including the Henry Shelton Act which provides enhanced funding (~$6.5-$7.5million per year) from the State to the LIHEAP program. There is also a provision calling for the continued exploration of targeted energy efficiency programming for delivered fuels customers, which is an underserved population in Rhode Island. One outgrowth of this effort was that beginning in 2019, through the Utility run Energy Efficiency (EE) program, delivered fuels customers were able to receive enhanced incentives for Air Source Heat Pump installations. The recently released Heating Sector Transformation in Rhode Island Report also advocates for the equitable transition of the heating sector through its policy recommendations and encourages program designs that deliver appropriate incentives and financing opportunities for low-income customers that address first-cost barriers and energy burdens and tracks the success of those efforts. Lastly, the utility's annual energy efficiency plans dictate a certain amount of spending on the income-eligible (e.g. low-income) sector. In 2022's Annual Energy Efficiency Plan, (Docket 5189, National Grid sets funding levels of residential income eligible programs at $16,814.3 of implementation funding for electric programs and $9,317,600 of implementation funding for natural gas programs. 

Community Engagement

As part of its 2023 Annual Energy Efficiency Program, RI Energy contracted with Green and Healthy Homes Initiative to reconvene its Equity Working Group, and which has continued into 2024 with participation from OER. The goal of this working group is to give impacted communities and the organizations that serve them an ongoing and structured opportunity to collaborate and provide input and feedback on the planning, design, and delivery of Rhode Island Energy’s energy efficiency programs, with a specific focus on equity. RIE presented its initial Equity metrics targets in December 2023, and the working group has continued to investigate additional metrics the utility might track.

The Office of Energy Resources strongly advocated for a definition of equity to be included within the state’s Least Cost Procurement Standards during a 2023 review of the standard and maintains equity as a focus in all regulatory engagement. 

In addition, the Office of Energy Resources has developed public participation guidance to begin addressing the inherent inequities that exist in public participation processes. As part of this effort, the Office of Energy Resources is gathering data and information about who in our communities is attending public workshops. Following these workshops on clean energy initiatives (such as the state’s goal of meeting 100% of electricity demand with renewables by 2030), OER circulates a survey to workshop participants via email to collect anonymous demographic data. When collated, this information provides insight on which voices were in the room and which were underrepresented. In turn, that insight can be used to improve our participation processes and enhance diversity. 

For Community Solar efforts, OER ran a White Glove Pilot Program to guide two electric distribution customers on the Income-Eligible rate (A-60 customers) through signing up and participating in Rhode Island’s Community Solar opportunities. The purpose of this pilot was for OER to better understand the needs and challenges of A-60 customers regarding participation in Community Solar opportunities as well as supporting a more equitable distribution of the benefits of Community Solar. OER also established a Low and Moderate Income (LMI) working group specific to Community Solar. This group discussed various barriers to participation that existed and attempts to address them through program changes.  

Other efforts included partnering with trusted community organizations to establish foundational definitions pertaining to energy equity and using those to collaboratively develop equity metrics that can be used to track and monitor progress as part of Rhode Island’s 100% Renewable Electricity by 2030 Report. Additional agencies that OER worked to establish ongoing relationships with included Rhode Island Housing and the Rhode Island Office of Diversity, Equity & Opportunity. Community organizations that OER also partners with for these efforts include, but are not limited to, Direct Action for Rights and Equality (DARE), Groundwork RI, the Racial and Environmental Justice Committee, the George Wiley Center, People’s Port Authority, Youth in Action (YIA), and NeighborWorks. To better conduct and assist with these community outreach efforts, OER also hired a full-time Energy Justice Program Manager. 

Workforce Development

Increasing the size and skill of the Rhode Island clean energy workforce has been a priority since the inception of the State Energy Plan in order to ensure all cost-effective energy efficiency opportunities can be pursued. A component of the Grid Modernization Working Group was focused on identifying barriers in the workforce supply chain and developing strategies for recruitment and training to mitigate those. That focus is echoed in the recently released Heating Sector Transformation Report, which identifies workforce growth - particularly in emerging technology areas like heat pumps - as a key strategy to deploy in order to meet Rhode Island's decarbonization goals. In order to implement these strategies, the State has often utilized the Utility run energy efficiency programs as a vehicle for enhancing the workforce through targeted training and recruitment opportunities (often with waived enrollment fees). This partnership has led to significant growth in the RI clean energy workforce over the years, with a 25% increase in jobs since 2015. Additional emphasis was placed on workforce development in the 2021-2023 Three-Year plan, with a focus on increased contractor training around heat-pump technology, enhanced recruitment and partnerships with colleges/universities/vocational schools to promote Energy Efficiency as a career, providing more training opportunities to existing workers looking to upskill or transition away from work in the delivered fuels sector, and promoting more participation in building operator certification trainings, to name a few. The Office of Energy Resources collaborates with the Rhode Island Commerce Department each year to conduct a clean energy jobs report in order to track the industry and find ways to support growth, which is in direct service of Gov. Raimondo's 20,000 clean energy jobs by 2020 goal.

Last Reviewed: November 2024

The Global Warming Solutions Act passed in 2020 requires the preparation of Vermont Climate Action Plan (‘the Plan’) by December 1, 2021. The Vermont Climate Council (VCC), created by Global Warming Solutions Act of 2020, has taken a unique and targeted approach to community engagement with traditionally marginalized and impacted communities as it seeks to develop Vermont's Climate Action Plan (CAP). The Council, through the Just Transitions subcommittee, is working in coordination with consultants to "co-create" a public engagement plan with Vermont communities, particularly focused on those most impacted. This process is currently underway. The co-creation process aims to both engage with communities that are typically not engaged well and develop the public engagement plan for the VCC CAP process. This strategy will utilize multiple communication mediums to engage these communities and the public at large, including interviews, focus groups and round tables, and online surveys and polling platforms. In particular, the process will begin with 15 one-on-one interviews and two roundtables of community leaders (one BIPOC specific affinity space) to inform the development of public engagement plan. The Department of Public Service (PSD), assisted by other state agencies, is also in the process of writing the state's Comprehensive Energy Plan (which occurs every six years). The PSD is working closely with the VCC and their consultants to coordinate on this stakeholder engagement, so as to not overburden communities and make sure insights from the process are incorporated into both plans.

All VT EEU's have low-income sector minimum spending requirements. Additionally, Efficiency Vermont has conducted a statewide energy burden study to determine the areas of the state with the highest energy burdens for targeting efficiency programs. Distribution utilities, which operate Renewable Energy Standard Tier 3 programs for fossil fuel reduction, must achieve equity in all sectors, including low-income, in measure/programs offerings. Programs include incentives for CCHPs, weatherization, and Electric Vehicles. Numerous other efforts are underway to develop tools to help further evaluate how initiatives are affecting marginalized groups. The State of Vermont has developed an Equity Impact Assessment tool to help agencies evaluate policies across numerous dimensions - such as which communities will benefit from policies, how adverse impacts will be mitigated, community engagement and consultation, and the metrics and data required to track or evaluate the program. The VCC through their Just Transitions subcommittee is also in the process of developing a series of guiding principles for a just transition, including a series of questions and draft equity scoring rubric, to help the VCC evaluate potential recommendations for inclusion in the Climate Action Plan.

Workforce Development

The 2022 VT CEP identifies Weatherization workforce development as a critical component to address to meet energy goals. The General Assembly directed funds in 2021 for Efficiency Vermont to begin to specifically address workforce issues that relate to weatherization. Once workers are available, they must be properly trained; if the weatherization is not done properly, energy savings will not materialize. For example, the Weatherization Assistance Program subsidizes the first three months of employment in recognition of the initial training needs.

Last Reviewed: July 2021

Carbon Policy

In 2021, Gov. Jay Inslee signed the Climate Commitment Act (CCA). The CCA created a market-based cap-and-invest program to require the state's largest polluters to reduce greenhouse gas pollution. The CCA centers environmental justice and equity, ensuring communities that bear the greatest burdens from climate change and air pollution today see cleaner, healthier air as the state cuts emissions. Specifically, the CCA requires that no less than 35% of annual investments — with a goal of 40% — must provide direct and meaningful benefits to vulnerable populations in overburdened communities. The act also requires that not less than 10% of CCA investments are supported by a Tribal resolution. In its first year of funding allocation (2023) the Office of Financial Management estimates that of total CCA investments, nearly $924 million, or 43%, are directed to overburdened communities. Nearly $155 million, or 7.3% of CCA funds, are directed specifically to benefit Tribes.

Goals

In 2019, legislation was passed that created a prevailing priority across all CEF grant programs: priority must be given to projects that benefit vulnerable populations including Tribes and communities with high environmental or energy burden. Further, a new allocation of funds was established specifically for community solar projects that provide benefit to low-income households, low-income tribal housing programs, affordable housing providers, and nonprofit organizations providing services to low-income communities.  

In 2019, the Clean Energy Transformation Act (CETA) was passed creating new low-income and equity provisions for energy planning in WA. 19.405.120 RCW (Energy assistance for low-income households) mandates that all electric utilities in WA make prorgams and funding available for low-income households (a threshold to be decided upon by UTC and Commerce) prioritizing those with high energy burden (> 6%). Additionally, all electric utilities must provide data to Commerce on the amount of money spent on enregy assistance programs, how many households and household type every other year. Utilities must also submit a biennial assessment report analyzing the effectiveness of programs (short-term and sustained) to reduce energy burden, outreach strategies including tribal consultation and language access and the 
funding levels necessary to meet: (A) 60% current energy assistance need, or increase of 15% from 2018, by 2030; and (B) 90% current energy assistance need by 2050. Utilties are mandated to make progress on these goals as part of compliance with CETA.

CETA also included equity provisions as part of the utility planning process. In addition to electricty being reliable, clean, safe and affordable, it must be equitable as well. Provisions as part of the 2030 greenhouse gas neutral standard (19.405.040(8) RCW) include language that states that every customer must benefit from the transition to clean energy including through an equitable distribution of benefits to highly impacted communities (19.405.020(23) RCW) and vulnerable populations (19.405.020(40) RCW). This requirement also extends to two new utility planning documents, the Clean Energy Implementation Plan (19.405.060 RCW) and Clean Energy Action Plan (19.280.030 RCW), where utilties must include these requirements as part of their long term planning. The rules for how this will be implemented are still in proces. There is also a new requirement that integreated resource plans include an analysis informed by a cumulative impacted analysis based on a mapping tool currently being developed by the WA State Department of Health. Commerce and the UTC will develop rules to implement this tool into the utilty planning process.

Commerce incorporated specific income, air quality, transportation and energy justice indicators into two of the agency's most recent Clean Energy Fund grants (EV infrastructure and LI Community Solar). We plan to track these indicators across the census tracts of applicants to monitor changes to the environmental or health factors the indicators measure.

Community Engagement

The state's 2021 State Energy Strategy centered around equity, with an equity lens being used to frame the executive summary as well as an introductory chapter devoted to equitable policy design. One of the most critical pieces of this equity chapter was identifying who has been left out in the clean energy transition by "ensuring public participation and inclusion of historically marginalized voices" (pg 24, Equity chapter). However, to date these community engagement strategies are still underdevelopment.

In the 2021 Legislative session, Washington state passed a bill that directs agencies to incorporate environmental justice into its strategic plan in SB 5141 including the development of a robust community engagement plan (see bill language, section 13). Supported by this new statewide mandate, the State Energy Strategy will be part of a greater effort across state agencies to ensure that marginalized voices are centered in the grant programs, agency request legislation and other significant actions taken by the agency. 

Workforce Development

CETA includes incentives for workforce development in the form of a tax credit for using certain labor standards. The statutes includes a 50 percent tax exemption for projects that make a good-faith effort at “procurement from and contracts with women, minority, or veteran-owned businesses; procurement from and contracts with entities that have a history of complying with federal and state wage and hour laws and regulations; apprenticeship utilization; and preferred entry for workers living in the area where the project is being constructed,” 75 percent tax exemption for projects that meet the above criteria and also “compensate workers at prevailing wage rates determined by local collective bargaining," and a 100 percent tax exemption for projects “developed under a community workforce agreement or project labor agreement,” as certified by the WA Department of Labor and industries.

Last Reviewed: November 2024