SEE Action Guide for States: Energy Efficiency as a Least-Cost Strategy to Reduce Greenhouse Gases and Air Pollution and Meet Energy Needs in the Power Sector

Highlights energy efficiency as a least-cost strategy to meet air pollution reduction and other policy objectives, including energy affordability and reliability. A practical document that presents established policy and program “pathways” to advance demand-side energy efficiency, including:

• Ratepayer-funded energy efficiency
• Building energy codes
• Local government-led efforts, such as building performance policies
• State-led efforts, such as energy savings performance contracting
• Commercial and industrial private sector approaches, such as strategic energy management and combined heat and power

The guide presents case studies of successful regional, state, and local approaches to energy efficiency with sources for more information, resources to understand the range of expected savings from energy efficiency, and common protocols for documenting savings.

Useful for state air regulators and other state policy makers or administrators and their stakeholders in a variety of policy contexts including but not limited to:

• State, local, and corporate climate and energy strategies, goals, and regulations
• State clean air strategies and regulations
• Federal clean air requirements: National Ambient Air Quality Standards, Clean Power Plan