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• Introduced by Sen. Phil Rockefeller, (D-Kitsap County) (D) on January 28, 2009, establishes a policy goal of weatherizing twenty thousand homes and businesses in the state in each of the next five years. The legislature also intends to attain this goal by supporting community programs and maximum family-wage job creation.
  • Referred to the Senate Environment, Water & Energy Committee on January 28, 2009.
    • Substitute offered in the Senate on February 25, 2009, eliminates the provisions for municipalities to create energy conservation services; the requirements for the GA to conduct energy efficiency audits and agencies to implement cost-effective measures determined during those audits; and the utility incentives for energy efficiency programs . The substitute passed in the Senate by voice vote on February 25, 2009.
  • Referred to the Senate Ways & Means Committee on February 25, 2009.
    • Substitute offered in the Senate on March 2, 2009, to add definitions of credit enhancement, Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program and State Energy Program. Limits grants from State Energy Program funds to weatherization for middle-income households and commercial, industrial, and nonprofit operations that have reported an average of less than $1 million gross revenue annually in the preceding five years. Authorizes the director to create an Appliance Efficiency Rebate Program with federal funds provided for this purpose. In the distribution of program funding, at least 60 percent is for program outreach and delivery of energy efficiency services; at least 20 percent is for technical assistance and training; up to 10 percent is for credit enhancement; and up to 5 percent is for WSU administration. Requires that entities receiving funding for credit enhancements are to provide information on credit enhancements, as specified by the director. Directs that the Energy Efficiency Assistance Account must receive $30 million of federal funding. Deletes the provision that payments to the Energy Efficiency Assistance Account must be treated as payments for energy conservation for purposes of tax credits, tax deductions, equity returns, or other benefits for which conservation investments are eligible. Makes technical changes. The substitute passed in the Senate by voice vote on March 2, 2009.
  • Referred to the Senate Rules Committee on March 2, 2009.
    • Amendment offered by Sen. Phil Rockefeller, (D-Kitsap County) (D) on March 10, 2009, to remove the requirement that the report make recommendations on how the state's energy efficiency and weatherization programs must all be transferred to WSU. Retains the requirement for WSU and CTED to review the state's energy efficiency and weatherization programs and make recommendations on energy efficiency and weatherization program coordination or consolidation within one state entity. The amendment passed in the Senate by voice vote on March 10, 2009.
• Passed in the Senate (34 to 14) on March 10, 2009. [Vote Details and Comments]
• Received in the House on March 13, 2009.
  • Referred to the House Technology, Energy, and Communications Committee on March 13, 2009.
    • Amendment offered in the House on March 27, 2009, makes the following changes to the Energy Efficiency Assistance Program: removes the $500,000 per year limitation on funding for technical assistance and training, changes the definition of "middle-income", adds definitions of "family-wage" and "low-income individual" and requires performance metrics for each grant recipient. The amended bill requires sponsors applying for a grant from WSU to provide convincing evidence that family wages will be paid for energy efficiency services, the jobs being performed could lead to careers in the construction trades or the energy efficiency sector, the sponsor plans to employ workers trained in the applicable workforce training programs, to the extent feasible and only responsible and reputable contractors with satisfactory compliance records will be used. The amended bill requires WSU to provide a preference to sponsors that proposes projects that are designed to achieve the greatest scope and economies of scale in providing energy efficiency services and feature utilization of a hiring and workforce development program with entities that recruit disadvantaged workers, operate skills training and education programs, and place disadvantaged workers in sustained employment. A preference is provided for sponsors that allocate a certain percentage of their construction work hours to work performed by state certified apprentices, first period apprentices, disadvantaged workers who reside in the area, or recently separated veterans or members of the National Guard that have recently returned from active duty in a war zone. Technical changes are made to the definition of "low-income" and "sustainable weatherization" for purposes of the Low-Income Residential Weatherization Program. Creation of family-wage jobs is added as a criterion for how the DCTED may allocate funds through the Low-Income Weatherization Assistance Account. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on March 27, 2009.
  • Referred to the House Ways & Means Committee on March 30, 2009.
    • Amendment offered in the House on April 4, 2009, to remove the definition of "middle-income" and replaces it with a similar definition of "income eligible." Technical changes are made for consistency. The amendment failed in the House by voice vote on April 4, 2009.
  • Referred to the House Rules Committee on April 6, 2009.
    • Amendment offered by Rep. John McCoy, (D-Tulalip) (D) on April 16, 2009, to eliminate the middle-income energy efficiency assistance program at Washington State University (WSU) extension energy program. Removes expedited grant making authority from the bill. Authorizes the WSU Extension Energy program to implement grants for pilot programs providing community-wide energy efficiency upgrades. Specifies that contractors will be given a preference if they use workers trained in workforce training and apprentice programs; pay prevailing wages; hire in the community in which the program is located; and create employment opportunities for veterans, members of the national guard, and low-income and disadvantaged populations. Directs the department of community, trade, and economic development, rather than WSU, to: Establish a grant program to create credit enhancements; create an appliance efficiency rebate program; allocate federal funding to state bond authorities for energy efficiency finance programs; and approve any financing mechanisms offered by municipalities receiving federal energy stimulus funding, among other changes. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on April 16, 2009.
    • Amendment offered by Rep. John McCoy, (D-Tulalip) (D) on April 16, 2009, to change the codification instructions for the provisions related to: certain financing mechanisms offered by financial institutions, municipalities, and state bond authorities and creation of an energy efficiency appliance rebate program. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on April 16, 2009.
    • Amendment offered by Rep. John McCoy, (D-Tulalip) (D) on April 16, 2009, to make it a requirement rather than a preference for contractors performing energy efficiency services through the Washington State University Extension Energy pilot program to: participate in quality control and efficiency training, use workers trained from workforce training and apprenticeship programs if these workers are available, pay prevailing wage, hire from the community in which the program is located and create employment opportunities for veterans, members of the National Guard, and low-income and disadvantaged populations. Makes it a requirement rather than a preference for sponsors under the Low-Income Weatherization Program to: use workers trained from workforce training and apprenticeship programs if these workers are available and create employment opportunities for veterans, members of the National Guard, and low-income and disadvantaged populations. Requires sponsors under the Low-Income Weatherization Program to: pay prevailing wage and hire from the community in which the program is located. Clarifies references to paying prevailing wage. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on April 16, 2009.
• Passed in the House (63 to 34) on April 16, 2009. [Vote Details and Comments]
• Received in the Senate on April 21, 2009. Passed in the Senate (30 to 17) on April 21, 2009. [Vote Details and Comments]
• Signed with partial veto by Gov. Christine Gregoire on May 7, 2009, An Energy Efficiency Assistance Program is created within the Energy Office at the Washington State University (WSU). The program director will be appointed by the President of WSU and must coordinate with CTED and other entities providing energy audit and efficiency improvements so as to maximize program assistance for low- and middle-income households and minimize duplication of target populations. Covers allocation of grant guidelines, as well as the financing of energy efficiency projects, farm energy assessments, CTED-LIHEAP, consolidation of weatherization programs, workforce training and publicly funded housing as they pertain to the newly created program. Section 403, which requires the Governor to designate a single point of accountability for all energy and climate change initiatives within state agencies, is vetoed .