Green Building Law Blog
What would you do to make your home more energy efficient for $57,000?
A study out of the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reports:
As of 31 December 2009, according to data available to the Department of Energy, about 9,100 homes had been weatherized out of a planned 593,000
The pricetag for weatherizing 9,100 homes? Over $57,000 per home.
According to the Home Energy Saver website, sponsored in part by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency, the average cost of the top 10 home energy upgrades is just $3,960, a difference of over $46,000 per home.
Part of me doesn't care. According to Keynesian thinking, just spending stimulus money and fast, it doesn't matter how, is key to stoking the economy. But there is part of me which envisions the thousands of additional homes which could have been weatherized had the government been more efficient in its spending.
http://www.greenbuildinglawblog.com/admin/trackback/184583
Mickey Kaus at Slate.com has identified the problem as the imposition of Davis-Bacon wage regulations on the program. I don't appear to be able to post a link, but you can find the entire discussion at his blog on slate.com under the heading "Unions Are Crippling Obama - Exhibit A."
Shari (and others): regarding the many varieties of credits, grants, and incentives: I consult for a national homebuilder seeking to make the "green" leap. They envision selling an energy-efficient home with renewable energy as well.
Can someone identify ALL the many situations and email me?
I am knowing that each state would have additional, but with energy efficiency combined with renewable energy, I am not sure where the $$$$ is with all these. Please help.
Ken