Efficiency Maine recently requested comments on its draft Request For Proposals for overseeing the expenditure of its federal stimulus funds for energy efficiency.  Here is the text of that letter: 

Dear Friend of Efficiency Maine:

Efficiency Maine is developing a statewide weatherization and home energy efficiency program to be supported primarily with federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding. =2 0This initiative will be offered in conjunction with low income programs to ensure that all Maine homeowners will have a unique opportunity to reduce their energy costs.  Efficiency Maine is allocating a significant portion of our ARRA funds for this initiative. 

Our planning is well underway, and although this is not final, we are developing a program which will:

1       Start Maine down the path towards weatherizing all homes within 20 years;

2       Weatherize at least 2,000 homes per year in the next two years, with a minimum of 25% average efficiency improvement in each home;

3       Provide creative financing where needed in cooperation with local financial institutions to maximize available resources;

4       Provide cash incentives efficiently and effectively to encourage homeowner participation;

5       Include an energy audit, installation, and project follow-up in compliance with the highest established national professional standards;

6       Capitalize on existing workforce and business resources here in Maine;

7        Ensure quality control to verify that completed work is performed properly; and

8       Comply with strong reporting requirements for program results.

Efficiency Maine is considering implementing this program through a contractor to be selected through an RFP process. 

We have heard from many people who have ideas or input regarding the possible structure and major components of such a program, the role of private contractors in delivering the program, how consumers can be assured of good value, quality control issues (including professional qualifications of those doing the work), and data management – among other areas. 

If you have suggestions or comments on how a program such as this could be structured and designed to achieve its goals, please let us know.   Please forward your ideas by email no later than July 19, 2009 to Richard.Bacon@maine.gov.  We will carefully review your comments and post all timely responses on our web page prior to issuing the RFP.  Thank you very much.

Sincerely,

John Brautigam
Director, Energy Programs


What follows are comments from MABEP members regarding this issue:

Ed Henningsen:
I liked the letter until I got to the paragraph about implementing the program through a contractor. That just sends chills down my spine. I am an auditor and not interested in weatherization work, too old. All I can envision is the CAP Agencies or Community Action Groups winning the bid. There would be no work for independent auditors then. I’ve talk to PROP and Community Action Group and they want to do the work with their own people. They have no interest in subletting audits. They rather hire people thereby creating a bigger bureaucracy rather than working with what is available. One Community Action Group I talked with admitted they do “for profit” work while they are getting subsidized by the government. Where is the equality there?

All I know, if the contractor(s) ends up being a CAP agency(s) or something similar you can write off all the time, money and effort Efficiency Maine and MSHA have spent on training auditors and weatherization people. Also, I think there would be good grounds for a challenge to the state for enticing people into a field with promises of work then leaving them high and dry.

If the contractor is tasked with using independent auditors and independent weatherization contractors then I have no grip. Or, if I can bid on audits in York County and Portland area that would be great.  But a program needs to be accelerated to save many of the people you’ve trained from leaving the field. We’ve been patient but we can’t wait forever. Homeowners, on their own, will not support a fraction of people who have been trained and promised an income from this field. The homeowner needs a helping hand or oil needs to go over $4.00/gal again. Please remember the independent businesses in your decisions.
 
Edward Henningsen
Henningsen Inspections LLC
Cell: 207-730-1686
Ph: 207-439-1091
Em: ed@HennInsp.net
www.henningsen-inspections.com


Dirk Faegere:
My first and major concern is that the "contractor" will become some big, out-of-state entity wanting to latch onto a bunch of Maine's stimulus money.  Just what we don't need !!  Each state has their own money under this plan.  I'll send my concerns (I have others too) to Dick Bacon but wanted MABEP members to consider this one possibility carefully.   As I recall we recently had some pretty big and lousy contractors "helping" to run the war in Iraq, and the job many did seemed to be designed to mostly line their own pockets (very successfully, I might add).  Let's keep Maine money in Maine with Mainers controlling it.

MABEP members can be as good as anyone as dealing with the bullet items he listed, esp #'s 5 & 6 (I numbered them below).   And number 4 is a MUST (it's what we begged the Joint Committee for).   Seems to me we are already doing #1.    We can do #2 if we have #4.   We're working on #7 (aren't we?)

Everyone:  Please respond to Dick Bacon by this Sunday July 19th.   Here's our first real chance to flex the power and knowledge of our member base.

I encourage you all to bring this up in a concerted effort during the July 23rd meeting.         Cheers. --Dirk


Doug Baston:
You should be concerned about this. It's what's happening elsewhere.  Big Beltway Bandit defenses contractors like Lockhead-Martin are now "efficiency experts".  This happens when there enough zeros behind the contract amounts -- and it doesn't matter what the work is, as long as there is enough money, they will become "experts" .If I were you all, I would align around one proposal from one local prime contractor.
D

Douglas Baston, President
North Atlantic Energy Advisors
Eighteen Sheepscot Road
Alna, Maine 04535
P:   207.882.7221
F:   207.882.4194

Don Protheroe:
     This letter resonated with me for a couple of reasons:  I , too, want to be  involved in auditing, not weatherization ( I hate to say I am too old, but that is a distinct possibility)  I am passionate about helping reduce energy consumption and yes, I would like  to make money doing audits.  I received training last fall through Maine Home Performance like a lot of others.  I invested quite a bit of my kids' college money in equipment that is pretty much collecting dust in my garage now.  I  feel that there ought to be a way for me to participate in the "new deal" in some form  .                

     Maine's business fabric is made up of a lot of small businesses , many of which are part time because of a relatively low population density and seasonal issues.  I suspect that audits will be more seasonal  than any of us would like:  infrared scanning requires a difference in temp between indoor and outdoor and much of the spring/summer does not provide us with these conditions especially in places where air conditioning is not the norm.   Seems to me that having subcontractors available who can provide inspections during the peak season ( cold weather)  is a good business model.        

     The other part of Mr. Henningsen's letter that grabbed me is that I also contacted my local CAP to offer to sub and they told me that they only go out to bid for such services once per year ( next March) and showed shockingly little interest in striking up any kind of relationship. ( "call back next spring")   My sense is that they are happy with their present level of business, and my guess is that they do not have the will or the capacity to expand  their program dramatically as would be required to deliver services on the scale that is planned.  I did not get the impression that such an organization was destined to successfully manage such an undertaking.        

     There does need to be some kind of oversight so that we don't all become accused of being snake oil salesmen.  Let's face it: we are trying to sell something to the public that many don't believe they need and don't have any reason to trust. A totally unregulated program will certainly lead to abuse by unscrupulous contractors looking to "get rich quick" and give the industry a bad name in the process.  Agreed, too, that unless oil goes to $4+ per gallon, most folks won't do anything on their own ( can't afford to) without some form of incentive.    

     If there is a single contractor model adopted, perhaps there should be some language to ensure that those of us who want to be in it for the long haul at least get considered to be part of the program.  Remember the ( failed)  automobile emissions inspection that was given to a single outside ( out of state) contractor several years ago?  One only need  look at the buildings that it occupied that are now other businesses  to be reminded that we need to manage this locally and in a flexible way to avoid having the whole program become a joke.     

    Sorry,  I don't have what I believe is the answer to how the program should be administered, but perhaps I have highlighted ( echoed?)  some potential pitfalls     

Don Protheroe    
Dirigo Home Performance    
South Thomaston, ME