Number
091061
Version
ORIGINAL
Reference
071136, 080121, 080398
Sponsor
ALD. HINES
Title
Resolution relating to application for a grant from the United States Department of Energy for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Retrofit Ramp-up Program.
Analysis
This resolution authorizes the Office of Environmental Sustainability to apply for an Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Retrofit Ramp-up grant in the amount of up to $75,000,000, of which up to $45,000,000 could be applied to projects in the City of Milwaukee. The Wisconsin Energy Conservation Corporation (WECC) will most likely administer the program, and the City will be applying in conjunction with the City of Madison and the City of Racine. The grant requires a local leverage ratio of 5:1 through public and private partnerships for any funds spent within the City. Acceptance of the grant will require Common Council action to allow tax-lien financing consistent with s.66.0627, Wis. Stats., allowing special charges to fund energy efficiency improvements. This grant may also require the issuance of a municipal bond that is backed by program revenues and grants to capitalize the revolving loan fund.
The purpose of this grant is to fund whole-neighborhood building energy retrofits. These will be projects that demonstrate sustainable business models for providing cost-effective energy upgrades for a large percentage of the residential, commercial, and public buildings in selected neighborhoods. The program will include partnerships between the public and private sector, utility retrofit and audit programs, alternative financing, and retail partnerships.
Body
Whereas, The City of Milwaukee is eligible to apply for grant funds from the U.S. Department of Energy to fund whole-neighborhood building energy retrofits, and these will be projects that demonstrate a sustainable business model for providing cost-effective energy upgrades for a large percentage of the residential, commercial, and public buildings in selected neighborhoods; and
Whereas, The Common Council, through adoption of Common Council Files 071136 and 080121, has expressed its commitment to promoting growth of solar technology in the City; and
Whereas, The Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants (EECBG) Program, funded by the Recovery Act, represents a Presidential priority to deploy the least expensive, cleanest, and most reliable energy technologies across the country; and
Whereas, The Vice President’s Middle Class Task Force has identified the Recovery through Retrofit program as a key component to expand the home energy efficiency and retrofit market nationwide and to provide workers of all skill levels training and employment in this emerging market; and
Whereas, The Mayor shares the EECBG Program’s stated goals of reducing fossil fuel emissions in a manner that is environmentally sustainable and maximizes benefits for local and regional communities, reducing the total energy use of the eligible entities, improving energy efficiency in the building sector, the transportation sector, and other appropriate sectors, and creating and retaining jobs; and
Whereas, This program will serve as an example of comprehensive community-scale energy-efficiency approaches that could be replicated in other communities across the country and will establish the City of Milwaukee as a national leader in these efforts; and
Whereas, Project partners, including Wisconsin Energy Conservation Corporation, Focus on Energy, Johnson Controls, We Energies, the State Office of Energy Independence, City of Milwaukee Department of City Development, University of Milwaukee-Wisconsin, Milwaukee Area Workforce Investment Board and organized labor have pledged to provide incentives and in-kind services greater than 500% of the grant amount to help promote large-scale energy efficiency activities in the City; and
Whereas, The Wisconsin Energy Conservation Corporation (WECC) recently completed a pilot neighborhood efficiency program, Together We Save, that successfully leveraged a home energy retrofit program through a community-based approach for the purpose of increasing energy efficiency investments by homeowners in two neighborhoods in the City of Milwaukee; and
Whereas, Johnson Controls has been selected as a partner due to its place as a world leader in energy savings facility retrofits and due to the large amount of local retrofit financing leverage it is providing to meet the 5:1 local match, and Johnson Control will apply grant funds to its energy saving performance contracts model; and
Whereas, This grant authorizes communities to delegate their application to other public or nonprofit organizations and thus, the cities of Milwaukee, Racine and Madison intend to partner with WECC to apply for and administer the program; and
Whereas, The operation of this grant from 4/1/2010 to 3/31/2013 would apply up to $45,000,000 to projects within the City of Milwaukee, of which the entire amount would be provided by the grantor; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, By the Common Council of the City of Milwaukee, that application to the U.S. Department of Energy is authorized and the Department of Administration - Office of Environmental Sustainability shall apply for this grant or delegate the right to apply to the Wisconsin Energy Conservation Corporation on the behalf of the City; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Common Council supports the grant provision to utilize tax-lien financing consistent with s.66.0627, Wis. Stats., allowing special charges to fund energy efficiency improvements; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Common Council supports the potential issuance of a municipal bond and grants that is backed by program revenues to capitalize the revolving loan fund; and, be it
Further Resolved, That the Common Council supports the potential use of energy saving performance contracts subsidized by this grant to retrofit City facilities.
Requestor
Department of Administration
Drafter
LRB09462-1
RTW
11/23/09