Connecticut Climate and Energy

Background

ENE's energy program started in Connecticut nearly ten years ago, and ENE’s extensive advocacy for energy reforms there is the foundation of its work in the rest of the region....
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Energy Efficiency as a Resource

New commitments to efficiency investments are among the most important steps Connecticut can take toward a more sustainable energy future. Connecticut’s energy laws call for the state to meet its energy needs by procuring all efficiency that is cheaper than traditional supply. See Efficiency 101 for CT. According to recent ENE analysis, increasing efficiency program investments to this level would increase economic activity by $40 billion dollars. This would contribute $25 billion to the gross state product (GSP), with $18 billion returned to workers through increased real household income and increased employment equivalent to 183,000 job years. See ENE’s Energy Efficiency: Engine of Economic Growth and Engine Report Results for CT.

PA 07-242, Act Concerning Electricity and Energy Efficiency included sweeping changes that were intended to significantly ramp up efficiency investments, deliver cost savings and put the state on track to reaching its GHG emissions targets.

ENE is working through a number of channels to advance and advocate the approval of such a plan and further expand opportunities for efficiency in Connecticut:

• The Connecticut Energy Advisory Board (CEAB), a stakeholder council that advises the state on the IRP and other energy decisions. ENE contributed comments, recommendation and analysis to the board.
•  The Energy Conservation Management Board (ECMB) is a stakeholder board designed to bring representatives of business, industry, consumer, environmental and other interests to guide state efficiency program development. It was the first of its kind in the region. ENE is a founding member and remains active in the board’s efforts.
• The 2007 energy legislation also created the state’s first home heating oil efficiency program, managed by the Fuel Oil Conservation Board, which reports to the ECMB. ENE is an appointed representative on the board.
• DPUC Dockets: ENE is active in the following dockets related to efficiency procurement and implementation. DPUC docket materials can be found on the DPUC Web site.
  • 10-10-03 and 10-10-04: Review of the Connecticut Energy Efficiency Fund's 2011 Conservation and Load Management Plan for 2011 and Connecticut Gas Utilities Joint Conservation Plan for 2011 ENE Filings

ENE is working with policy makers, utilities and other stakeholders to decouple gas and electric utility revenues from sales. This will help to align the utility’s incentives with saving energy and reducing energy bills. Decoupling was approved in a 2009 rate case for the CT electric utility United Illuminating on a two-year pilot basis, which is currently under review.

PA 11-80, An Act Concerning the Establishment of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and Planning for Connecticut’s Energy Future, builds upon the principles of the 2007 legislation with a number of provisions that will help advance efficiency and other clean energy resources. The bill:

• creates a streamlined energy and environmental protection agency
• creates a clean energy financing authority
• creates an earlier opportunity for the consideration of non-wires alternatives to transmission lines, and
• establishes a variety of other initiatives that will promote clean energy in the state.

For more info, see Summary of PA 11-80.
 

Building Energy Efficiency

Improving efficiency of residential, commercial and industrial buildings provides a tremendous near-term opportunity to reduce energy use and GHG emissions.

Connecticut has adopted legislation that will put in place an updated model code (IECC 2012), which will improve commercial building efficiency by 30%. The legislation also calls for development of an enhanced energy efficiency performance standard for larger buildings and establishes a process for ensuring compliance with the energy and environmental components of the code.

ENE is monitoring and participating in the state process to update the State Building Code through the Codes and Standards Committee and contributed recommendations to help the state meet the statutory requirement of enhanced efficiency. See the Connecticut Codes and Standards Web page.

ENE is working to facilitate coordination between lead abatement and home weatherization programs that serve low-income families. These efforts help to put state efficiency money toward efforts that improving the safety of homes and reducing energy costs.  Leveraging multiple sources of funding and coordinating delivery of these services lowers the costs and improves the results of both. Press Release: ENE and LAMPP Announce New Coordination of Energy Efficiency and Lead Abatement Programs

Renewables

Developing new, low-carbon resources is a key part of Connecticut’s effort to secure a clean, sustainable energy future. The state’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) calls for achieving 20% new renewables in the state’s energy mix by 2020 and funding has been established for renewable research, development, and deployment through the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund (CCEF). Pursuant to the 2011 energy bill, the CCEF will be administered by the newly established Clean Energy Financing and Investment Authority, which is directed to help plan for, develop, and finance clean energy sources. Notably, “clean energy” is defined to include renewables as well as, for example, energy efficiency, storage, and electric vehicle infrastructure.

Climate

Connecticut is one of the founding members of the nation’s first mandatory greenhouse gas cap and trade system, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). Through the auction of RGGI allowances, the program has raised millions of dollars for Connecticut clean energy investments, the majority of which are designated for energy efficiency program expansion, with the remainder primarily to other clean energy programs.

• ENE’s RGGI Auction Tracker shows a detailed breakdown of CT and other states’ auction revenues and expenditures.
• See ENE’s RGGI page for more materials and analysis
   

Connecticut is one of the first states in the U.S. to adopt a mandatory cap on carbon emissions. ENE and its partners in the Stop Global Warming Connecticut campaign rallied widespread support from lawmakers and stakeholders for this historic legislation. An Act Concerning Connecticut Global Warming Solutions (HB 5600) sets a mandatory cap on global warming pollution, requiring emissions reductions to 10% below 1990 levels by 2020 and by 80% below 2001 levels by 2050.