The New York Legislature will approve Gov. Kathy Hochul’s budget by April 1. Environmental advocates are pushing for the fiscal plan to include policies that move buildings off fossil fuels.
Hochul’s budget includes $250 million for electrifying homes as part of a plan to get two million homes in the state electrified or electric-ready by 2030.
During a news conference yesterday hosted by the Renewable Heat Now campaign, Lonnie Portis – environmental policy and advocacy coordinator with Harlem-based group WE ACT for Environmental Justice – said it’s about addressing indoor air pollution that can lead to negative health outcomes for communities of color.
“There’s an opportunity to ensure that neighborhoods that are hit first and worst with air pollution and climate change see developments that are all-electric,” said Portis. “And building electric also enables New York to meet its climate targets in a way that ensures everyone has a safe, warm, healthy home.”
New York leads the nation in premature deaths resulting from air pollution caused by burning fossil fuels in buildings for heating, hot water and cooking. The campaign is asking for $1 billion in the budget to fund all-electric or electric-ready affordable housing.
The campaign also supports the Fossil-Free Heating Tax Credit and Sales Tax Exemption, which would incentivize the move to geothermal heat-pump systems.
Oneida County resident Maggie Reilly installed an air-source heat pump in 2020. It’s kept her home warm while reducing her carbon footprint.
“We must pass the legislation that electrifies New York now,” said Reilly. “The urgency of this action can’t be understated. If anybody wants to learn about these air-source heat pumps, they totally work in cold climate and we have cold climate here in central New York.”
The tax credit and exemption have been introduced in the Senate and Assembly.
The coalition is also calling for the passage of the All Electric Building Act, which requires new buildings to have all-electric space and water heating and appliances. It passed the Senate Housing Committee on Wednesday.
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Idaho lawmakers want more control over building codes that regulate energy efficiency.
The standards cover things like the efficiency of appliances and how windows are insulated in residential and commercial buildings, and are updated every three years.
Legislators want to lock the 2018 codes into statute so that any changes must be approved by the House, Senate and governor. The construction industry has voiced support for the move, saying energy-efficiency requirements make homes more costly.
But Jonathan Oppenheimer, the external relations director at the Idaho Conservation League, said it’s important to keep up with standards.
“They help reduce the cost every month to homeowners for utilities in their homes, and in their businesses,” said Oppenheimer. “And by applying some of the modern technologies and best practices we can save homeowners and renters and business owners hundreds if not thousands of dollars every year.”
Oppenheimer said energy-efficiency codes also help reduce carbon emissions from a sector that is producing an increasing share of overall emissions.
House Bill 660 passed the House and has moved on to the Senate.
Another piece of legislation, House Bill 614, would similarly place lawmakers directly in charge of electrical, mechanical and plumbing codes. Oppenheimer said both bills would ultimately take control away from local governments.
“We’ve often heard the refrain that ‘government closest to the people governs best,'” said Oppenheimer. “But in this case what it is doing, it is saying that the Legislature knows best, and precluding local communities from adopting standards and codes that makes sense for their communities.”
Idaho Conservation League says HB 614 could affect ordinances in Boise and Ketchum that require newly constructed single-family homes to be set up for electric-vehicle charging.
Oppenheimer said these ordinances will help reduce costs to retrofit homes as electric vehicles become more prevalent.
HB 614 has also passed the House and is in the Senate.
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In recent years, New Mexico has tried to move away from its historical role as an oil and gas hub, and the crisis in Ukraine could have major implications.
Russia’s invasion of its neighboring country has caused oil prices to surge.
Reilly White, associate professor of finance at the University of New Mexico, said depending on the length of the conflict, it also could put pressure on U.S. producers to ramp up crude-oil production.
“The United States right now is the largest oil producer,” White explained. “We have about 20% or so of the world’s production. Russia is third; they have about 11%, and New Mexico is the third biggest oil-producing state.” Texas produces the most oil in the U.S., followed by North Dakota.
The U.S. economy has weakened because of the two-year pandemic, with Americans already paying more for electricity, heating and gasoline than they were last year. White pointed out it is the most expensive we have seen oil prices since 2014, and it is impossible to know if its effects on consumers will be short-term or long-term.
“But the hard part is that we respond because we’re humans to these immediate price shocks, as opposed to sort-of long-term overarching stories, and they’re not two separate issues,” White noted. “We have to consider both the short-term and long-term.”
There is also speculation Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will put pressure on governments to build more wind and solar power to reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels, but as White emphasized, it cannot happen overnight.
“It’s likely this will speed it up, but at the same time, we don’t have the infrastructure to switch to completely electric tomorrow,” White stressed. “Infrastructure takes a very long time to build out and technological progress takes a long time to see fulfilled.”
White added New Mexico and other states could also be affected by the supply of palladium from Russia used in catalytic converters, jewelry and other items. Russia is the world’s largest producer of the chemical element, also found in South Africa and Canada.
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Washington state could head to the front of the pack when it comes to electrifying new buildings. Proposals before the State Building Code Council would require high-efficiency heat pumps for space and water heating in new commercial buildings.
According to the nonpartisan organization RMI – formerly the Rocky Mountain Institute – the shift away from gas to electric would eliminate about eight million tons of carbon dioxide by 2050, equivalent to taking 1.8 million cars off the road each year.
Jonny Kocher is an associate with the clean energy think tank.
“Building electrification is one of those kind of no-brainer solutions where it’s like we can actually save money both up front if the building is designed correctly,” said Kocher. “The utility bills typically will either be the same or less. And then, we reduce emissions and improve health.”
Skeptics of the plan point to the reliability and affordability of alternative sources to gas.
The State Building Code Council is hosting a public hearing on Friday, including testimony on potential code changes. The state updates its energy codes every three years.
Other states and cities are considering changes that would push the electrification of buildings. Kocher said if Washington approves the proposed code updates, it would become a leader on this issue.
“Even though they would be some of the strongest in the country, it’s overall a very modest change,” said Kocher. “We’re just starting with new construction because we know that by 2050 we need to have a lot of our buildings be all electric, and if we don’t start with new construction we’re just going to never really get there.”
Washington state cities, including Seattle, Shoreline and Tacoma, already have ensured that new buildings must be electrified.
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