New Energy Law Includes Block Grant Program
On December 19, 2007, President Bush signed into law a historic, comprehensive energy bill aimed at moving the United States toward greater energy independence and security: the Energy Independence and Security Act (HR 6).
Among the provisions important to cities is a new $10 billion Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program. Modeled after the Community Development Block Grant program, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program would provide grants to cities, counties, and states for innovative practices to achieve greater energy efficiency and lower energy usage.
These grants would fund local initiatives, including building and home energy conservation programs, energy audits, fuel conservation programs, building retrofits to increase energy efficiency, “smart growth” planning and zoning, and alternative energy programs.
As outlined in the bill, any city with a population of at least 35,000 and any of the 10 most populous cities in the state would be eligible for the block grant. The Act authorizes $2 billion for each fiscal year 2008 through 2012. If and when funds are appropriated, 68 percent would be designated for local governments (cities and counties), 28 percent for states, two percent for Indian tribes, and two percent for competitive grants to local governments that were not eligible based on population or to a consortium of local governments.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), who made energy policy a priority of her “New Direction Congress,” said the measure was “groundbreaking in terms of what it will do in savings to the consumer, protecting the environment, and providing a new direction.”