Celebrating Two Years of the Inflation Reduction Act

August 16th, 2024 marked the two-year anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and its billions in funding for transformational energy initiatives like Home Energy Rebates, the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and extensive tax credits.

CLEAResult has been following the Home Energy Rebates developments with great interest. The steady progress over the past two years has been promising, and we’re optimistic that Wisconsin’s recent launch of the nation’s first Home Efficiency Rebates program may signal a new phase of Home Energy Rebates program rollouts. According to Rewiring America, 15 additional state energy offices are aiming to launch at least one of the rebate programs by the end of 2024, and nine more are targeting mid-2025. While those plans are subject to change, we’re confident that the momentum will continue to build.

Let’s look back at the last two years and some of the key developments along the way:

• Department of Energy (DOE) guidance on Home Energy Rebates: Last July, the DOE released full guidance on the application process and how these programs would be implemented. It inspired questions and action across the industry on income qualification, technology and data sharing, and on how the measured and modeled path might not be so different after all. While each state and territory will bring its own unique approach to these programs, they are likely to serve as a proving ground for innovative energy programming.
• States and utilities begin collaborating: The IRA presents a significant opportunity to expand and enhance existing utility energy efficiency program benefits nationwide. In Tennessee, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and the state energy office are working together to leverage existing infrastructure in their design and implementation. By building on TVA’s existing Home Uplift program, Tennessee will bring the IRA dollars into an already-proven customer experience and maximize benefits for households that need it most. Last summer, TVA and representatives from the state of Tennessee joined us at the 2023 CLEAResult Energy Forum to talk more about their collaboration.
• Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) announces national rebate tracker API: Last summer, PNNL who supports the DOE’s Home Energy Rebate Team announced the creation of an Application Programming Interface (API) that will allow state energy offices and implementers to securely connect to the national rebate tracker database and facilitate accurate and transparent reporting of program data to the DOE. For more than a year, CLEAResult has been grateful to participate in the feedback process with PNNL, offering our insights from the implementer’s viewpoint and contributing to its success. We are very excited for PNNL’s API to be deployed in the first program implementation.
• Technology solutions emerge to help simplify IRA implementation: As work proceeded with the API to simplify the IRA’s intricate workflows and reporting requirements, CLEAResult launched our turnkey solution CLEAResult ATLAS™ IRA Home Energy Rebates, designed to meet all the complex reporting requirements out of the box, allowing states to quickly mobilize and administer IRA programs and includes portals to simplify the interaction with contractors and customers participating in the programs.
• First group of states apply for funding: On January 17, 2024, California, Hawaii, New Mexico and New York became the first states to officially submit their applications for IRA Home Energy Rebates funding. Today, 50 out of 56 states and territories have shared their intent to set up rebate programs. A total of 23 have already applied for full funding, 15 of which have been approved.
• Solar for All funding is awarded: As part of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund portion of the IRA, 60 applicants were awarded a combined $7 billion through the Solar for All program, and it became clear how important it would be to blend this and the Home Energy Rebates program together. The Solar for All program was designed to expand access to solar energy for low- and moderate-income households and funded by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). It also supports investments in clean technology projects and lending to low-income communities.
• New York launches first Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates (HEAR) program: In May 2024, New York became the first state to launch the HEAR program, which provides income-qualified customers with incentives for energy-saving measures like air sealing, insulation and efficient appliances like heat pumps, heat pump water heaters and associated electrical upgrades.
• Wisconsin becomes the first state to launch the Home Efficiency Rebates program: Earlier this month, Wisconsin announced its first-in-the-nation launch of the Home Efficiency Rebates program, which provides energy efficiency upgrades for income-qualified households across Wisconsin. Wisconsin will leverage CLEAResult ATLAS™ IRA Home Energy Rebates for implementation.

Two years in and half the states and territories have submitted their applications. The deadline for all applications is in January. Now that the first programs have launched, we believe we’ve crossed an important threshold into the next phase of IRA dollars supporting energy projects across the country.  

This article was originally published in the CLEAResult blog and is republished with permission.