DEFINITION OF “WEATHERIZATION” FOR SINGLE-FAMILY RESIDENTIAL UNITS

NOTICE OF PUBLIC INFORMATION MEETING AND OPPORTUNITY FOR COMMENTS

Connecticut General Statutes §16-245m requires that any conservation and load management plan submitted by Connecticut’s electric distribution companies include steps that would be needed to achieve the goal of weatherizing 80% of Connecticut’s residential units by 2030.  The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has established a standardized definition for the “weatherization” of residential units to help measure progress toward this goal.

Broadly, weatherization as a general term refers to the installation of energy-efficient measures to improve the building envelope, its heating and cooling systems, its electrical system, and electricity and/or fuel consumption. 

Draft Definition of "Weatherization" of Residential Units in Connecticut

In Connecticut there are three approaches that may be used to determine that a Connecticut home has achieved the standardized definition of “weatherized:” the use of a certain score using the United States Department of Energy Home Energy Score; the “Prescriptive Approach,” which is a set of default criteria; or the “Performance Approach,” which provides for the overall performance of a home to be assessed and the results compared to a computer model.  A home only needs to meet one of these approaches to be considered “weatherized” for the purpose of measuring progress toward the goal.

This establishment of a standardized definition of “weatherization” is not a regulation.  These approaches are not used for measuring requirements for compliance with any specific regulation or program.  They are intended to simplify the characterization of the energy efficiency status of Connecticut’s residential units, in a practical way, for the purpose of measuring progress toward a statewide goal.  This standardized definition does not affect the federal Low-Income Weatherization Assistance Program.

Public Information Meeting:  The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s (DEEP), Bureau of Energy and Technology Policy is conducting a Public Information Meeting to review the definition of “weatherization.”  The public information meeting will be held on August 13, 2015, at 11:00 a.m. in Hearing Room 1, at DEEP’s New Britain Office, Ten Franklin Square, New Britain, Connecticut. 

Comments: DEEP is accepting comments on the definition of “weatherization” which may be filed electronically on DEEP’s website or submitted to DEEP.EnergyBureau@ct.gov on or before August 28, 2015, by 4:00 p.m. All materials submitted by stakeholders in this proceeding will be posted on the DEEP website. Any questions can be directed to Debra Morrell at (860) 827 2688 and/or via e mail at DEEP.EnergyBureau@ct.gov.

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer that is committed to complying with the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Please contact us at (860) 418-5910 or deep.accommodations@ct.gov if you: have a disability and need a communication aid or service; have limited proficiency in English and may need information in another language; or if you wish to file an ADA or Title VI discrimination complaint. Any person needing a hearing accommodation may call the State of Connecticut relay number - 711. Requests for accommodations must be made at least two weeks prior to any agency hearing, program or event.

Notice filed with the Secretary of State on August 4, 2015.