By Kristen Cheriegate: Senior Policy Analyst | Ms. Cheriegate navigates ICAST through the policy world to obtain real-world solutions, funding resources, and networks with potential partners to provide more services to low- and moderate-income households. ICAST’s mission never falters, and we continue to scale the delivery of green solutions to positively impact vulnerable households in low-income and disadvantaged communities (LIDACs). In …
How Programs Can Navigate Aggressive Change to Achieve Deep Energy Savings in Multifamily
Rapid market, regulatory, and policy evolutions are creating opportunities for utilities to coordinate with key stakeholders to identify and harness untapped methods of achieving their program goals. The U.S. is beginning to see a slow transition away from natural gas-based efficiency measures as electrification has emerged as a leading decarbonization strategy and a growing pathway for utility energy efficiency programs. …
March 2024 Policy Blog
Kristen Cheriegate | ICAST Policy Analyst ========== States Pledge to Boost Heat Pump Sales An agreement was signed by environmental agencies in nine states, calling for electric heat pumps to comprise 90% of residential heating, air conditioning, and water heating sales in the signatory states by 2040. Though not legally binding, the memorandum of understanding (MOU) holds that these …
Tapping Grants, Loans, and Incentives to Cut Project Costs
by Ravi Malhotra How should the multifamily affordable housing market ensure it maximizes its benefits from the various federal, state, and local government resources on offer? Government programs typically do not consider or emphasize strategic and meaningful leveraging and collaboration with other programs, much less provide valuable guidance to do so. The lack of coordination within and between agencies and …
ICAST Secures ERA Funding for Electric Coop and Tribe
DENVER, CO, February 29, 2024 – ICAST (International Center for Appropriate and Sustainable Technology), a 501c3 nonprofit, was awarded $10 million under the U.S. Dept. of Energy’s Energy Improvements in Rural or Remote Areas (ERA) program to install a 5 MW solar photovoltaic (PV) and 10 MWh battery energy storage system (BESS) on Taos Pueblo lands in New Mexico, served …
ICAST Experts Weigh In: The State of Solar & Storage Markets
Sam Lipman | Director of Solar Programs Mr. Lipman is responsible for developing shared solar projects, thus furthering ICAST’s work to help underserved communities benefit from clean energy solutions. Looking at the solar landscape today, we’re seeing innovations in solar and storage laying the groundwork for increased efficiency and reduced costs. Further, since the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) was signed …
February 2024 Policy Blog
Kristen Cheriegate | ICAST Policy Analyst Funding Announced for States and Tribes to Modernize Power Grid The Biden-Harris Administration has announced $562 million for fiscal year 2024 under the Grid Resilience State and Tribal Formula Grant program. This program is designed to help modernize the electric grid to reduce the impacts of climate change while ensuring the reliability of the …
Pulling Federal Investment into Multifamily Housing
By Ravi Malhotra Originally published in NH&RA Tax Credit Advisor, February 2024 Most federal and state agencies aiming to spend their Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) funds for residential clients are finding out that it will not be easy. Most do not think of multifamily affordable housing when they design their residential programs. In focusing on …
January 2024 Policy Blog
Kristen Cheriegate | ICAST Policy Analyst New York Opens States First Publicly Funded Electric Vehicle Charging Stations Using federal funds from the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program, Kingston New York opened the state’s first public electric vehicle (E.V.) charging stations. This is part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda to build a reliable E.V. network connecting …
COP28: A Debate Between Soft Commitments vs Decisive Action
By Kristen Cheriegate: Senior Policy Analyst | Ms. Cheriegate navigates ICAST through the policy world to obtain real-world solutions, funding resources, and networks with potential partners to provide more services to low- and moderate-income households. The 2023 United Nations Climate Change Summit, the 28th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (COP28), took place in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) between …