Florida and Texas, the states hit hardest by Hurricanes Irma and Harvey, have made strides recently in improving energy efficiency.
Florida jumped three spots on the annual American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy’s 2017 State Energy Efficiency Scorecard to number 22. Texas’s ranking improved to number 26. Both states have an opportunity to place greater emphasis on energy efficiency policy and implementation as they rebuild in the wake of the recent hurricanes, according to ACEEE.
Massachusetts was ranked first, breaking its 2016 tie with California, as the Golden State slipped to second place. Over the past year Massachusetts has focused on increasing access to efficiency programs for low- and moderate-income ratepayers, and invested in peak demand reduction projects.
Rounding out the top five states were Rhode Island, Vermont, and Oregon. Rhode Island opened the nation’s first offshore wind generation farm, and achieved a perfect 20-out-of-20 score in the utility programs category for the fourth year in a row due to its Three-Year Energy Efficiency Procurement Plan. Virginia enacted an energy performance contracting plan for public agencies.
Related Stories
| Oct 18, 2012
EPA commercial building lead paint rule pushed back to 2015
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's inclusion of commercial buildings in a residential lead paint rule is being delayed until 2015.
| Oct 18, 2012
Chicago pushing green roofs to reduce heat island effect
The city of Chicago has mandated that all new buildings that require any public funds must be LEED certified, usually with a green roof.
| Oct 11, 2012
OSHA launches pilot program for alternative dispute resolution on whistleblower complaints
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is launching an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) pilot program for complaints filed with OSHA's Whistleblower Protection Program.
| Oct 11, 2012
Bill promotes investment in commercial, multifamily retrofits
The Commercial Building Modernization Act recently introduced in the Senate would extend and streamline a current tax deduction to encourage commercial and multifamily residential building owners to perform comprehensive energy-efficient retrofits.
| Oct 11, 2012
Morristown, N.Y., settles code violation dispute with Amish
The town of Morristown, N.Y., has dropped charges of building code violations against local Amish communities to settle a First Amendment complaint.
| Oct 11, 2012
Mesquite, Nev., rebels against state-mandated energy code
The city council of Mesquite, Nev., voted against adopting a new energy efficiency code adopted by the state.
| Oct 11, 2012
Bloomingdale, N.J., restricts ground solar and wind energy installations
The borough of Bloomingdale, N.J., recently adopted regulations for solar-energy and wind energy systems.
| Oct 3, 2012
Bill introduced to extend home energy efficiency tax credit
A bill to extend the expired residential energy efficiency tax credit for installing qualified furnaces, boilers, central air conditioners, and heat pumps was recently filed in the U.S. House of Representatives.
