New program for Southampton Town residents to save money on high fuel bills

If all goes according to plan, Southampton Town residents will be able to participate in a weatherization program before next winter’s cold temperatures arrive.

The proposed “Property Assessed Clean Energy Loan Program,” a new initiative to help homeowners save money on their fuel bills by making their homes more energy-efficient, was unveiled by Southampton Town Supervisor Anna Throne-Holst on Wednesday, January 13, at the North Sea Community Association in Southampton. The low-interest loan pilot program, though still in planning stages, will theoretically work in two ways: to either provide town funds to homeowners, who will then repay the low interest loans or via tax breaks to homeowners who wish to privately finance improvements to make their homes more energy-efficient.

According to Ms. Throne-Holst, there will be no income limits on the program, meaning that every one of Southampton Town’s approximate 28,000 single-residence homeowners will be eligible to participate. A pilot program, expected to roll out next quarter, will be funded by a federal $206,600 grant Southampton Town received for sustainable projects. Approximately $90,000 of those funds will be used for administration of the program, while the remaining $100,000-plus will be used for actual weatherization funding for the initial program participants.

Though the finer points of the program are still being worked out, Ms. Throne-Holst reported that Bridgehampton National Bank has given a commitment to supply financing to Southampton Town once the weatherization program is underway.

According to Sustainable Southampton Town Green Advisory Committee Chairman Tip Brolin, the weatherization program (referred to internally as a Residential Energy Efficiency Program, or REEP, by Green Committee members) will provide discounted energy audits to participants, with Southampton Town splitting the cost of the audit. Mr. Brolin estimated the cost of the audits to be around $300 each, with Southampton Town funding half of the fee. Once the audit occurs, then the homeowner will find out the best ways to save money on heating costs by implementing energy-efficient measures. Audits and weatherization efforts will be performed by local town-approved contractors, he said.

According to Mr. Brolin, who also spoke at last Wednesday’s meeting, payment for weatherization—usually the replacement of leaky windows, insulation, furnace retrofits and upgrades and such for “making the envelope tight”—would then either be provided by Southampton Town in the form of a low-interest loan with an approximate seven-year repayment schedule or a tax break for those who wish to pay the costs up-front and out of pocket. He stressed that the finer points of financing and incentives still need to be worked out before the program rolls out. But Mr. Brolin added that he was confident that the savings from weatherization would be greater than the costs associated with paying to heat an energy-draining house.

“Expect payments of $80 a month less,” he said, referring to a homeowner’s heating bill after the weatherization process.

According to documents supplied by Ms. Throne-Holst, loan participants on average would gain a net savings of approximately $400 over the course of the loan repayment period.

Southampton Town’s “Property Assessed Clean Energy Loan Program” is based on a successful 2-year-old program in Babylon, according to Mr. Brolin and Ms. Throne-Holst. Much of the proposed Southampton Town program will mirror Babylon’s weatherization efforts, which have thus far yielded positive results, they said.

“We don’t need to reinvent the wheel here,” Ms. Throne-Holst said.

For those on a limited income, there is currently a New York State-sponsored weatherization program available for homeowners in Suffolk and Nassau Counties as well. But that program is only for those who make less than $2,030 a month, according to Maureen Pedrotti of CDC of Long Island, who was also present at the meeting last Wednesday.

The state weatherization income-based program is free and provides an energy audit and weatherization improvements for those who qualify. Special consideration is given for seniors and those with respiratory problems, Ms. Pedrotti said.

For more information on the free New York State Weatherization Grant Program, visit cdcli.org or call (631) 471-1215, ext. 172. For more information on the proposed Southampton Town weatherization program, visit www.sustainablesouthamptontown.org.