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ACEEE Says Energy Efficiency Provisions in Climate Bill Could Create 650,000 Jobs by 2030

The federal energy efficiency provisions included in H.R. 2454, the American Clean Energy and Security Act, could save approximately $750 per household by 2020 and $3,900 per household by 2030, according to a preliminary analysis by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).

ACEEE believes the energy efficiency provisions in the bill will reduce the transitional costs of capping carbon pollution and that savings from reduced energy use will be reinvested locally, creating a multiplier effect that will generate economic activity and jobs. ACEEE estimates that approximately 250,000 jobs will be created by the energy efficiency provisions in H.R. 2454 by 2020, with a total of 650,000 jobs generated by 2030. Furthermore, the transitional cost of cap-and-trade legislation is reduced by investment in efficiency because fewer new energy facilities are needed and fewer upgrades are needed in existing facilities to help meet emissions ceilings—creating significant additional consumer savings.

ACEEE believes the cap-and-trade policy created by the legislation has the potential to help people and businesses to become more efficient and to drive adoption of energy-efficient technologies, our country's cheapest and most abundant energy source. In addition, allowances from the sale of carbon credits in the cap-and-trade system are expected to provide funding for a number of important energy efficiency initiatives. The bill includes a number of policies designed to increase savings from energy efficiency, including improved building codes, appliance and lighting standards, residential and commercial retrofits, and transportation planning.

Since H.R. 2454 was passed out of the full House Energy and Commerce Committee on May 21, but has yet to be considered on the House floor, there are ongoing efforts to improve certain provisions. ACEEE's top two priorities are to work with the renewable energy community to increase the combined renewable electricity and energy efficiency standard, and to insert provisions that would allocate at least one-third of funding going to electric distribution utilities to efficiency measures, much like the allowances going to gas distribution companies in Section 782b.

In total, ACEEE analysis shows that energy efficiency provisions in H.R. 2454 could reduce U.S. energy use by 4.4 quadrillion Btu's, which accounts for about 4 percent of projected U.S. energy use in 2020. These energy efficiency savings are more than the annual energy use of 47 of the 50 states, including New York State. Moreover, such savings will reportedly avoid about 293 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions in 2020, the equivalent of taking 49 million cars off the road for a year. By 2030, these energy efficiency savings grow to 11 quadrillion Btu's, accounting for about 10 percent of projected U.S. energy use that year. Increasing the energy efficiency component of the Combined Efficiency and Renewable Energy Standard to 10% savings by 2020 and devoting one-third of electric utility allowances to efficiency would increase these 2030 energy savings by about 25 percent.

Although these potential savings are dramatic, ACEEE says there are many additional cost-effective efficiency opportunities available. ACEEE's studies of energy efficiency's potential indicate that current technologies can cost-effectively save 25-30 percent of total energy use, and that new technologies could increase the available cost-effective savings.

Details on ACEEE's analyses of the House legislation can be found at: http://aceee.org/energy/national/index.htm.