Energy

A new program offered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will offer $837.5 million in grants as well as $4 billion in loan authority to help property owners to carry out energy efficient retrofits of HUD-assisted multifamily affordable housing. The Green and Resilient Retrofit Program (GRRP) is part of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) passed by Congress last August.

Drafty, inefficient homes in need of weatherization will soon have a new affordable program available to them with the launch of the Weatherization Repayment Assistance Program (WRAP). The program, funded by $9 million from the state and overseen by the Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA), will use an innovative on-bill payment model to help moderate-income Vermonters participate in comprehensive home energy projects.

WRAP will allow Vermont households to pay for qualifying weatherization projects like insulation and air sealing as well as heat pumps and advanced wood heating systems through a monthly charge on their utility bill that can be paid back over time. Both homeowners and renters can participate in the program.

Executive Director Maura Collins announced that Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA) has promoted Mia Watson (she/her) of Essex Junction to the new role of Special Programs Manager.

Watson has been at VHFA since 2017 as the Agency’s Research and Communications Coordinator. In this role, she developed and updated visualizations on the Vermont Housing Data website, authored many agency publications including VHFA blog articles, press releases, social media and annual reports and operated the Vermont Housing Fellow program, an internship program for graduate students. She has a Master’s in Public Administration from the University of Vermont. 

The Urban Institute recently released an article about how an equity lens is essential to mitigating the effects of hotter summers that are expected in the future due to climate change. As our climate continues to rise, low-income neighborhoods and communities of color are much more likely to experience hotter summers and the effects that come with it, even compared to higher income neighborhoods in the same area. This, along with less access to air conditioning and cooler buildings, means that marginalized communities are most vulnerable to the health risks associated with climate change.

The Vermont Department of Public Service (PSD) will soon begin updating Vermont's building energy codes, with the target effective date of Fall or Winter 2023. The code update process will include multiple opportunities for stakeholders to provide input and feedback.

The mission of the Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA) is to finance and promote affordable, safe, and decent housing opportunities for low- and moderate-income Vermonters.

Embedded in that mission is the need to consider the holistic cost of renting and owning, meaning not just the upfront cost of housing, but also the cost of living in it long term.

Heating inefficient homes is a significant expense. This particularly hurts the most vulnerable Vermonters since very low-income households spend 23% of their total income on heating costs, on average. Add to that unexpected shifts in fossil fuel costs like we are now seeing as a result of the Ukrainian crisis, and even more pressure is put on limited Vermont budgets.

Executive Director Maura Collins announced that VHFA has selected Ken Pulido (he/him) of South Burlington in the newly created role of Director of Energy Finance.

Pulido has a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California-Irvine and an MBA from Stanford University. He has worked as both a banker and developer in the energy and finance sectors, including most recently as a consultant working with Vermont utilities on decarbonization efforts. He is also a member of the South Burlington Energy Committee. Pulido has been consulting with VHFA for the last year on its Weatherization Repayment Assistance Program (WRAP), before accepting a role as a full-time staff member.

A group of energy and financing agencies is developing an innovative weatherization payment mechanism that will allow more Vermonters to participate in comprehensive weatherization projects. One step is to hear from potential customers to help design the process. We are seeking interested homeowners whose building is between 1-4 units in size to participate in a 1-hour focus group. Participants will each receive a $50 gift card for their time. Please find details and dates below. Register and share with others who may be interested!

In 2020 Vermont’s Energy Action Network formed a Weatherization at Scale action team, with the goal of weatherizing every home owned or rented by low-to-moderate income Vermonters by 2030. The coalition, which includes Vermont Housing Finance Agency (VHFA), successfully urged Vermont lawmakers and the Governor to invest more than $20 million towards weatherization in the FY 2022 state budget. This includes a $9 million pilot tariffed to-the-meter financing home weatherization program to be administered by VHFA.

VHFA recently began partnering with CarShare Vermont to offer its staff access to shared vehicles for business travel. This initiative will allow the Agency to reduce its carbon footprint while making travel more convenient and more affordable for its staff.

VHFA has long encouraged housing development in downtown, walkable areas, with the goal of connecting Vermont renters with jobs, schools and amenities, reducing reliance on cars and decreasing harmful emissions. However, going without a personal vehicle in Vermont can be challenging. Even if Vermonters are able to go without a car or reduce the number of cars in their household, it is often necessary to travel to rural areas that don’t have robust public transportation.