Alliance for Green Heat, 12/12/12 - Well-targeted energy efficiency tax incentives will result in significant energy savings and more energy-efficient products being released into the market faster, according to Steven Nadel, executive director of the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE), who testified before the U.S. Senate Finance Committee today. The Senate hearing focused on appropriate uses of the federal tax code for promoting investments in energy efficiency, particularly in the context of emerging discussions on tax reform.
Nadel said ACEEE found incentives for residential heating and cooling equipment were also successful in encouraging purchases of the most energy-efficient products. One of ACEEE’s recommendations for future tax credits was to promote higher efficiency levels and practices for residential boilers and stoves. ACEEE said that provisions from the recently expired section 25C should be updated for high efficiency residential furnaces, boilers, stoves, heat pumps and water heaters.
“The ACEEE has been very supportive of including wood and pellet stoves and boilers among appliances that receive tax credits, but have been frustrated that the 75% efficiency threshold for stoves is not third party verified or measured in a consistent manner,” said John Ackerly, President of the Alliance for Green Heat.
“High efficient wood and pellet stoves have a low market share in America and federal support could give advanced stoves the momentum to catch on in the marketplace,” said Ackerly.
The ACEEE report found that “in the case of appliances, tax credits have permanently transformed the market, which is the ideal outcome. For example, for refrigerators, clothes washers, and dishwashers, the tax credits spurred manufacturers to develop, introduce, and broadly market new high-efficiency products.”
To read Nadel’s complete testimony, click here.
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