Full Title: Energy Efficiency in the Residential and Commercial Sectors
Author(s): Maximilian Auffhammer and Alan H. Sanstad
Publisher(s): National Energy Policy Institute
Publication Date: January 1, 2011
Full Text: Download Resource
Description (excerpt):
Public policies to promote the diffusion of energy-efficient technology for providing energy services in residential and commercial buildings, which were introduced in the United States in the 1970s, are receiving new attention as a means of reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Energy efficiency (EE) is currently undergoing a dramatic resurgence, stimulated by its potential contribution to CO2 emissions reduction. In 2009, prior to the U.S. House of Representative’s approval of the American Clean Energy and Security Act (H.R. 2454, often referred to as Waxman-Markey after its two primary sponsors) in June, the combined increase in federal EE funding—in the administration’s 2010 budget and in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act—was approximately an order of magnitude above the funding amount in the years immediately prior. The renewed focus on energy efficiency is further reflected in its central role in the Waxman-Markey bill. Concurrently, efficiency programs—particularly utility demand- side management programs and building codes—are continuing to expand in California and other states. Whether or not the specific provisions of the Waxman-Markey bill are ultimately adopted into law, we see little reason to doubt that energy efficiency in buildings will continue to be promoted as part of large- scale CO2 policy.