Buildings use 40 percent of the energy and about 80 percent of the electricity consumed in the United States, and much of that is wasted through the use of inefficient energy systems. NEMA has advocated for increased energy efficiency in buildings for a long time, and we are excited that, this week, ten new communities joined the City Energy Project…
On Tuesday, February 9, President Obama released his FY2017 budget proposal. The $4.1 trillion proposal is largely perceived as a statement of the White House’s priorities from a president in his final year in office rather than a budget that would be accepted and passed by a Republican-controlled Congress. Indeed, many Republican Members of Congress have already indicated that the…
Today, America’s electrical and medical imaging industries applaud Congress for passing a $1.1 trillion omnibus legislative package that funds the government through September 30, 2016, addresses certain tax provisions and includes NEMA-supported cybersecurity language. Passage of the package completes legislative work for this session of the 114th Congress; the second session is scheduled to start when Congress returns on January 4,…
8 Years since Congress last passed a comprehensive energy bill.1 25 Years or older is the age of 70% of the transmission lines and transformers currently in use.2 40% Reduction in the duration of outages in Chattanooga, TN due to smart grid upgrades.3 $120-160 Billion dollars in transmission investment needed over the next decade.4 133 Years since Thomas Edison electrified…
Compiled by Patrick Hughes and Jonathan Stewart As required by law, President Obama released his FY2016 budget on the first Monday of February. Totaling $4 trillion, President Obama described the budget as a way to “replace mindless austerity with smart investments that strengthen America.” His proposal, which is subject to congressional approval, included increases in spending for a number of…
This past summer, my soon-to-be wife and I purchased our first home in Washington, DC’s H Street Northeast neighborhood a few blocks from Union Station. After years of renting, we finally had the opportunity to create the energy-efficient and solar-powered home we always wanted. Both my fiancée, Amy, and I work on energy and environmental issues – we spend our…
Do you know how much energy your office building uses? What about your neighbor's? Could you be saving energy (and money) by moving to a new building? These are questions that many tenants and building owners can't answer, because building energy use is not transparent – with the exception of a few cities that have passed so-called "benchmarking and disclosure"…
ESPCs are a hot topic this week! The White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) convened a summit Wednesday to discuss progress on President Obama’s energy savings performance contracting (ESPC) goal of entering into $2 billion worth of ESPC projects by the end of 2013. Senator Ron Wyden (D-Oregon), and Congressmen Cory Gardner (R-Colorado) and Peter Welch (D-Vermont) joined CEQ…