DAVIDSON, N.C. — North Carolina is making $208 million in federal money available to low and moderate-income homeowners so they can make energy efficiency upgrades to their homes.
The Department of Environmental Quality is launching the program through Energy Saver North Carolina. Homeowners, multi-family building owners, and tenants who have permission from their landlords may apply and eligibility is based on those making less than 150% of Area Median Income. The highest rebates are for those making less than 80% of Area Median Income.
With the rebates ranging from a few hundred dollars to $8,000, eligible applicants can replace a furnace or a water heater with an efficient heat pump system, improve wiring in their homes, or add insulation. Those not eligible for the rebates may be eligible for energy efficiency tax credits to help offset the costs of similar home upgrades. The rebates are meant to apply to those who would not typically have a high enough tax burden to take advantage of credits.
The program’s goal is to reduce emissions in the state while lowering energy bills. Julie Woosley, the director of the State Energy Office, said the program is targeting those who are most cost-burdened across the state as well as homeowners who were hard hit by Helene.
“This funding can be used as people are rebuilding to make sure that they’re rebuilding to an efficient standard,” she said.
At a launch event for the program, North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein touted the program’s potential for cost savings and job opportunities in the HVAC field.
“We are going to put money back into the pockets of working people in this state, by reducing their energy costs at the same time we’re creating jobs all across North Carolina,” he said.
Funding for the program comes from the U.S. Department of Energy through the Inflation Reduction Act, a piece of legislation the Biden Administration passed in 2022 without a single Republican vote. The incoming Trump administration has signaled it plans to claw back some of the funds allocated in the massive spending bill, to cut costs.
DEQ Secretary Reid Wilson said even if parts of the law are repealed, that should not impact anything about the program’s rollout in North Carolina.
“The agreement with DOE is finalized it is done so we feel good about that,” he said.
In other states, the situation is less certain. According to South Carolina’s Energy Office, the DOE issued conditional approval of the state’s applications for $137M on January 15. South Carolina needs final approval to launch the program. The office hopes to have the program launched in late 2025.
The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, which has been tracking the program’s adoption across the southeast, says so far, only North Carolina and Georgia have gotten the program up and running. Florida has received DOE approval as well.
Stacey Washington, the energy and equity director for SACE, said it’s the organization’s understanding that the further along a state is in the application process, the more likely it is they’ll receive their federal funding allocations.
“We’re just crossing our fingers and hoping that the Department of Energy will move quickly and get these programs,” she said.
Because the funding came from a federal law, only the legislature can take that funding away. In the meantime, the incoming Energy secretary’s office could still choose to approve incoming and pending state applications. SACE encourages states to continue applying and waiting as long as the funds are available.
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