Right to Efficiency
Pass The Green Affordable Pre-Electrification (GAP) Fund
As households around New York State continue to learn about and become more interested in the health, financial, and efficiency benefits of whole-home electrification, more and more are finding that their homes face significant barriers on the road to weatherization and electrification. These barriers are especially prevalent in Low to Moderate Income (LMI) households.
These barriers include: toxic materials such as asbestos, lead, and mold, outdated energy systems, deferred upgrades and repairs such as leaking roofs. Tracking down and applying for funding for home improvement and efficiency programs is often tedious with homeowners and contractors sometimes forced to apply multiple times just to complete one project.
New York State has committed to two million climate-friendly homes by 2030.
- 800,000 of these must be electrification-ready, low-income households.
- In order to meet these goals, the state must be prepared to assist low-income homes with significant barriers they face on the road to weatherization and electrification.
The Green Affordable Pre-Electrification (GAP) Fund addresses barriers home energy efficiency upgrades not covered by existing programs by providing funding to fill in these “gaps” to both renters and homeowners. The GAP Fund provides funding to tackle electrification obstacles that other programs don’t cover.
Why do we need a GAP fund?
Low-Income households often face the biggest barriers to energy efficiency, weatherization, and electrification due to living in an older housing stock that has higher maintenance needs or pre-existing health hazards like mold, lead, and asbestos. However, this pre-electrification work is usually too costly for homeowners and building owners to take on themselves. A GAP fund would help households address these legacy health hazards that would otherwise disqualify them from existing weatherization, energy efficiency or electrification programs funded by state and federal sources. This in turn has a number of benefits. Residents live in healthier homes with lower energy bills and less energy burdens, equitably improving physical and social determinants of health, and New York State gets closer to achieving its climate goals as mandated in the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA).
What work will the GAP fund cover?
Eligible projects include any work necessary to bring a building or home into compliance with existing building codes and regulations as well as any improvements that will make the building eligible for any local, state, or federal programs related to weatherization, energy efficiency, or electrification. This can include the mitigation of environmental hazards like mold, lead, asbestos, and radon, or the testing and replacement of insulation, septic and plumbing systems, as well as roof, foundation, or wall repairs, water intrusion mitigation, and electrical upgrades. The GAP fund will not cover the installation, repair, or replacement of fossil fuel powered equipment.
Case Studies
