Origins of the Iowa Utility Policy Charrettes 

During the 2023 legislative session, Republican Iowa State Representative Lundgren raised concerns regarding Iowa’s ratemaking procedures, which had not been reviewed since 2004 despite significant changes made by the state legislature to utilities’ processes and regulations. In response, HF 617 was passed and signed into law by Governor Reynolds, mandating the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) conduct an independent review. The IUB then organized three policy charrettes, or collaborative planning processes, where all interested parties contribute to the development of a master plan.

It is imperative that opportunities to tackle climate change and create well-paying jobs in the United States exist concurrently. As the country’s economy changes and the prevalence of carbon-free energy sources grows, it has become increasingly important to understand how employment in the energy sector is also growing and changing. The U.S.

Over the past 15 years, utility-run energy efficiency programming has produced significant energy savings, customer cost savings and a host of system-wide and societal benefits throughout the Midwest. Unfortunately, these benefits are not fully understood or recognized by many state legislators and other policymakers. As a result, MEEA and other energy efficiency industry experts must recurringly defend EE policies from those who misunderstand how efficiency is funded, its value and impact for utility customers and its widespread benefits within individual states and throughout the region.

MEEA is proud to announce a partnership with the Energy Association of Iowa Schools (EAIS) and Southwestern Community College (SWCC) to pilot a two-year apprenticeship for high school students. The Building Operator Certification (BOC®) training curriculum will be utilized as part of the classroom component during the first year and a half of the program.

Des Moines, Iowa joined the ranks of some of the most sustainability-conscious cities in the Midwest when the city council adopted a new benchmarking ordinance on June 3, 2019. The ordinance will require all city-owned buildings and privately-owned commercial and multifamily buildings larger than 25,000 square feet to report their energy and water usage to the city. Currently, large buildings in Des Moines account for 56% of greenhouse gas emissions, and this initiative will aid in the city’s goal of reducing their emissions 28% by 2025.

Utilities across the Midwest have invested billions of dollars in energy efficiency programs over the past several years, causing the energy efficiency workforce to flourish. However, the industry remains largely homogeneous and lacks diversity in trade ally suppliers, implementers and other program administrators.

On May 4, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds signed Senate File 2311(SF 2311) into law, which will make significant changes to the way utilities drive customer energy savings programs within the state. Most notably, the bill caps utility investments in energy efficiency and created a broad opt-out provision for all customers.

Last week the Iowa House Commerce Committee passed Senate File 2311, a bill that will significantly alter the way utilities drive customer energy savings programs in Iowa. The bill has already passed the Senate and is now eligible to go to a debate on the House floor.

In September, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy completed a case study profiling MEEA’s HVAC Savings Adjustment and Verified Efficiency (HVAC SAVE) program, which tells the story of how MEEA partnered with utilities in Iowa to launch a HVAC quality installation and quality maintenance program that has resulted in over 100,000 jobs and substantial energy savings.

With increased constraints on our nation’s electric grid energy experts turn to large energy users to reduce energy waste and ensure long-term electric reliability. While the Midwest could benefit significantly from industrial energy efficiency, opt-out policies threaten to undercut that savings potential.