Yampa Valley Sustainability Council
green bldg/energy star
The Governor’s Energy Office (GEO) ENERGY STAR New Homes Program is a critical part of Colorado’s New Energy Economy. Through this program, the GEO works closely with local governments, community organizations, utilities, homebuilder associations, homebuilders and Home Energy Raters to support the statewide construction and testing of new energy efficient single-family homes built to ENERGY STAR standards. The program aims to increase consumer awareness of energy efficiency options in residential new construction and actively support all participating Colorado ENERGY STAR homebuilders. All certified new homes receive the ENERGY STAR label to allow for simple identification by potential Colorado homebuyers.
ENERGY STAR is a component of the newly adopted Green Building program for Steamboat Springs and Routt County. In the second year of a partnership with the Governor’s Energy Office, the City of Steamboat Springs and Mountain Energy Consultants, YVSC is helping to educate builders, trades, realtors and appraisers about the benefits of energy-efficient design and building to a minimum of ENERGY STAR requirements.
The federal ENERGY STAR program offers Free ENERGY STAR webinars on a variety of topics.
Local Financial Incentives Guide
Tax credits and financing are available to help pay for energy upgrades and renewable energy systems.
Tracking down and applying for these incentives gets confusing.
Below is a little more information about the different locally-available sources of financial incentives:
STATE
website: www.rechargecolorado.org
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DSIRE
Database for state incentives on renewable energy and efficiency. Most of the programs listed here are from counties and cities that offer a lot of incentives.
website: www.dsireusea.org
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Mt Werner Water Conservation
Certificates for water conservation.
website: http://mwwater.com/conservation.html
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Chamber’s Sustainable Business Program
Requires that businesses demonstrate a reduction in energy usage, a plan to reduce, recycle, and reuse as much as their waste stream as is feasible, and to put in place water conservation practices. The Chamber also offers the Colorado Carbon Fund and Cents for Steamboat program.
website: http://www.steamboat-chamber.com/info/sustainable_business_program.asp
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Atmos Energy
website:http://excessisout.com/atmosenergy/ or www.atmosenergy.com/home/eaa.html
Provides energy assistance to eligible customers (elderly, disabled and low-income) to help pay their home heating costs. Also, they have the “Excess is Out” program for its residential customers. The program offers a low-cost energy audit as well as multiple efficient equipment rebates.
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GEO Community Energy Coordinators in the state of Colorado
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Department of Labor Workforce
a. Scholarship funding. This site has a list of approved trainings and training providers. http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite/CDLE-EmployTrain/CDLE/1251579652720
b. The Department of Labor and Employment has energy training funding available to offer you and/or your employees as “green” energy businesses. These funds are available for training/upgrades/certifications and promotes new products in Colorado ’s new energy economy in areas such as solar, photovoltaic, wind, hydro, biofuels, weatherization, energy efficient building and retrofitting , energy efficiency assessments and other green industries.
The energy training funds are derived from the federal level and are entitled the ”State Energy Sector Partnership Grant”. The funding targets businesses and their employees that are/would like to be associated with the “green industries”’. The requirements for these funds are not restrictive nor time consuming. This is a tremendous opportunity to upgrade skills/ gain certifications for you and/or your employees/promote new products. Contact Brian Bradbury Steamboat Workforce Center
phone: (970) 879-3075
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Section 9007 Rural Energy for America Programs (REAP) by USDA Rural Development:
Funding is available each year for grants and guaranteed loans to assist rural small businesses and agricultural producers with renewable energy and energy efficiency projects.
website: www.usda.gov/farmbill or contact local representative PJ Howe
email: p.j.howe@co.usda.gov
phone: 970-824-3476 ext 111
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Yampa Valley Electric Association
website: www.yvea.com
Solar Incentives provide true “net metering” for members who install solar equipment. Customers will be financially compensated for their total “banked” usage.
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Federal
Federal tax credits:
Form 5695 to file for federal tax credits. For 2011, tax credit is $500.
website: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f5695.pdf and see EnergyTaxIncentives.org
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