With the economy in free-fall and budget deficits across the country, many state green initiatives are taking a back seat to more pressing economic issues, but not in New Jersey.
New Jersey's new Energy Savings Improvement Program (ESIP) will enable residents of the Garden State to enjoy the benefits of green energy.
The ESIP will create new jobs, make public entities, such as schools, hospitals, police stations, public colleges and municipal buildings, more energy efficient, without costing the tax payers a dime!
At the bill's signing, Governor Corzine exclaimed, "Towns, schools, counties and public colleges can now become more energy efficient and save money when they retrofit their buildings and enter into long-term energy contracts with no additional costs."
The new program will allow public entities to contract with energy saving companies in up to 20-year lease purchases enabling public entities to implement energy conservation measures bypassing large upfront costs.
These energy conservation measures may include anything from the installation of new, more efficient heating and ventilation systems to the installation of motion-detector sensors for lights. All of these energy conservation measures will be financed with the money saved through these energy efficiency initiatives.
"Even the best-laid plans to replace outdated and energy-inefficient heating, air-conditioning or other large capital expenditures can go by the wayside because of tremendous upfront costs," said Assemblywoman Sheila Y. Oliver (D-Essex). "But the costs of continuing to use energy-gulping systems gets passed directly to the homeowners in higher property taxes. We need to promote partnerships that can lead to direct energy savings and protect taxpayers."
"The cost of operating energy-inefficient buildings impacts everyone," said Assemblywoman Pamela Lampitt (D-Camden). "As the annual energy savings from these programs grow, more and more buildings can be rehabilitated to make them cost-efficient and make their operation less costly to taxpayers."
Although New Jersey's ESIP Bill is an innovative approach to energy efficiency, there are few states with similar measures in effect. With the economy the sorry state it is, this only begs the obvious question: why?
At the federal level, provisions have been made for energy efficiency in the $789 billion dollar stimulus bill passed by the house and the senate on February 11, from $6.3 billion for state energy efficiency to $4.5 billion to implement energy conservation measures in federal buildings. While these provisions are a good start, they will likely do very little to truly advance the cause of energy efficiency.
Clearly the federal government would do taxpayers a service by taking a queue from New Jersey, who may soon be able to live up to its "garden state" nickname again!
Also Interesting: