It has been four years since electric utilities in Ohio have been allowed to run portfolios of energy efficiency programs for their customers. Since the state’s mandated energy efficiency resource standard (EERS) portfolios were wrapped up in 2020, utilities and advocates have supported bringing back EE through proposed voluntary portfolios in docketed proceedings with the Public Utility Commission of Ohio (PUCO). None of the attempts have been approved as proposed, and a few limited programs that have been negotiated through settlement agreements are a tiny drop in an empty bucket.  

The Midwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (MEEA) is happy to announce that the Building Operator Certification® (BOC) Level I and Level II courses were recently approved as official TechCred credentials. Consequently, residents of Ohio may be eligible for full tuition reimbursement upon successful completion of a BOC training thanks to funding from Ohio’s TechCred program, which aims to help Ohioans learn new skills, improve knowledge and make themselves more indispensable to the Ohio workforce.  

*Note: This Blog was published on November 13, 2024 and relies on unofficial election results. Official certification of state election results will take several weeks. MEEA will update this blog if there are any significant changes as results are certified.

The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants Program

In July 2024, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced 25 awardees of nearly $5 billion in Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program (CPRG) implementation awards. In early September, the EPA announced another $300 million in grants to 33 tribes and one territory in the final phase of planned CPRG funding. CPRG is one of several funding streams from the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act designed to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and advance environmental justice.

In our recent blog post Energy Markets 101: Regional Transmission Organizations, Independent System Operators and Energy Efficiency we discussed Regional Transmission Organizations (RTOs), Independent System Operators (ISOs) and wholesale electricity markets. If you’re not familiar with the RTOs and their capacity markets, go back and read Part 1. In this follow up, we’ll dive into how energy efficiency has historically participated in PJM’s capacity market and recent complaints filed with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in more detail.

Last year, Synapse Energy Economics published Missed Opportunities: The Impact of Recent Policies on Energy Efficiency Programs in Midwestern States with MEEA’s support. The report explored the energy and non-energy societal impacts of regressive energy efficiency policy in six Midwest states, including Indiana and Ohio.

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.

MEEA is producing a blog series to highlight Midwest communities using energy efficiency to progress their climate goals. The first city in the series is Cleveland, Ohio.

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.

On March 31st, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed HB 128 into law, formally enacting a partial HB 6 repeal bill that eliminates certain provisions of the law but does nothing to revive statewide utility energy efficiency programs.