Going, going, gone...

[Steven C. Waskewicz]

January 3, 2012
Federal Residential Energy Efficiency Tax Credits Have Expired – Call to Action to Have Congress Act to Extend Them



The federal tax credit for builders to build energy efficient homes (45L) and for homeowners to install energy efficient products (25C) expired on December 31, 2011.
After extending the payroll tax cut, unemployment benefits and doctor Medicare payments for two months, Congress adjourned for its holidays recess. Congress failed to take action on a “tax extenders” legislative package that would have renewed a number of tax credits including the residential efficiency credits.
RESNET and its strategic allies have been working hard with members of the Senate Finance Committee to have the residential energy efficiency tax credits extended. Word in Washington is that when Congress comes back into session in January, there will be a push to extend these important credits retroactively to January 1, 2012.
We need your help to make this happen. It is essential that the RESNET network and its building industry clients reach out to their Congressional delegation and educated them on the importance of the residential energy efficiency tax credits.
To assist you in this effort RESNET has posted a RESNET Legislative Call to Action page on its web site. The site includes:

• A recording of the Legislative Call to Action webinar that was conducted by RESNET’s Washington representative
• A page on how to locate your Congressional delegation
• Talking points for Congressional staff

The time is now to reach out and educate your Congressional delegation on the importance of the residential energy efficiency credits. By standing up we can make our voice heard in Washington.

© 2011 RESNET
Residental Energy Services Network

[Ben J. Gromicko]

Yep.
If you have a energy auditing business based upon funding, subsidies and rebate programs, you don't really have a business.

[James H. Bushart]

Finally. Glad to see it go. These government incentives were a waste.

[Jason Kaylor]

Originally Posted by bgromicko

Yep.
If you have a energy auditing business based upon funding, subsidies and rebate programs, you don't really have a business.

Actually Ben, the bulk of the work is from power companies and state incentives, not government incentives. I am somewhat unclear why Resnet really cares about this stuff.

JJ

[James H. Bushart]

Originally Posted by jkaylor

Actually Ben, the bulk of the work is from power companies and state incentives, not government incentives. I am somewhat unclear why Resnet really cares about this stuff.

JJ

RESNET and BPI serve as an unofficial lobby for the contractors who are certified by them. These contractors have, for a few years, been calculating government tax credits into their job bids as discounts and have relied heavily upon them to sell high end products in a down economy.

For example ... replacing working and intact single pane windows with double pane windows did little for energy efficiency but still fell under federal tax credit eligibility. Contractors were able to make a killing selling what were actually cosmetic home improvements as energy efficiency upgrades and were able to use these tax credits to defray the costs to their customers. Even the sales presentations for the new windows were called "energy audits" and could be deducted or eligible for credits, as well.

In Missouri in 2010, $7.5 million dollars of energy efficiency incentive money was used by HVAC contractors to sell heating and cooling home improvements under the same disguise. Very little of this money actually went toward making homes more energy efficient and, instead, went into replacing older units with newer units without any improvements at all to the thermal and pressure boundaries of the home.

With these distracting cash rewards to contractors out of the way ... savvy home owners who are looking for significant reductions in energy use will hire independent certified energy auditors to perform unbiased and complete home performance analyses that will show them the least expensive and most effective ways to upgrade their homes for energy efficiency.

With the report in hand detailing the scope of work needed to achieve the upgrade and a projection of what their future energy bills will be once the upgrades are implemented ... they will be able to call in three or four contractors to compete for their business, accordingly, as it should be --- to perform the services that they have chosen to implement as a result of their informed decisions.

No matter what your political views are regarding the manner in which the government spends tax dollars these cash incentives did very little to improve energy efficiency and proved to be a bad idea. While ending them is not a popular thing for contractors who have depended upon these incentives as marketing tools ... it greatly empowers the consumer to have these cash incentives gone. The financial reward that comes from energy efficiency is NOT in the rebate or credit for that goes into the pocket of the contractor, anyway. The financial reward that comes from energy efficiency for the consumer comes in the form of lower utility bills, the sustainability and increased value of the home and its comfortable and healthier environment. This far exceeds the tax credits or rebates.