Energy Incentive Programs, Washington
Updated November 2009
Below you will find questions and answers regarding Washington's utility energy efficiency programs, including options for load management, demand response, and distributed energy resources, and information about state-sponsored energy efficiency programs.
Washington budgeted more than $131 million in 2008 to promote increased energy efficiency in the state through programs administered by utilities and the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (including low-income and residential programs).
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What public-purpose-funded energy efficiency programs are available in my state?
Washington has no public-purpose-funded energy efficiency programs.
What utility energy efficiency programs are available to me?
Seattle City Light offers a variety of energy efficiency programs to commercial customers through its Energy Smart Services initiative. These programs include:
Free facility energy assessments for medium and large commercial customers to identify energy efficiency opportunities.
Financial incentives, based on annual kWh savings, available to medium and large commercial customers for installing energy-efficient equipment, including lighting, HVAC, controls, motors, and custom measures. These incentives are available for retrofit projects and new construction and can cover up to 60% of the installation cost of the equipment.
Funding for new construction projects to support design and installation of energy-efficient and high-performance building systems and equipment like lighting, HVAC, and custom measures.
Small commercial customer rebates for replacing inefficient lighting ($25 to $65 per fixture) through the $mart Business Program. Any small business in Seattle City Light's service area that is on rate schedule ESMC or ESMS (formerly rates 31 and 56) and is not part of a chain, campus, or institution is eligible for this program.
Rebates of $80 to customers on Vending Miser units. These devices reduce the energy consumption of cold drink vending machines by using an occupancy sensor to power down the lights and compressor. All rebates require an incentive contract of at least $500 and must be approved by Seattle City Light before installation.
Puget Sound Energy (PSE) offers a variety of energy efficiency programs that may interest Federal customers, including:
Grants for up to 100% of the installed cost of energy efficiency retrofits and upgrades on existing facilities, new construction, or expansion of existing facilities.
Rebates for the installation of specific energy-saving equipment, including lighting and lighting controls, occupancy sensors, LED traffic signals, HVAC equipment, vending equipment, commercial kitchen and refrigeration equipment, and more.
A prescriptive approach for new buildings of up to 100,000 square feet to provide funding for up to 100% of the incremental cost of energy-efficient building design and measures. Incentives range from $0.50 to $2.60 per square foot for the basic package plus substantially more for optional enhanced measures.
The Building Energy Optimization Program, which provides incentives of up to 100% of commissioning fees for assistance with analyzing energy use in lighting and HVAC as well as within operations and maintenance procedures.
Funding and support to public agencies interested in hiring a resource conservation manager to develop and implement a plan to manage energy, water, and solid waste costs. PSE typically pays 25% of the first year salary and also provides a guarantee that resource savings will exceed the individual's salary over a period of three years.
The Direct Installation and Maintenance Program in which PSE's contractors install specific measures at little or no cost to the customer. Current offerings include free vending machine energy control devices and maintenance services for rooftop HVAC units with economizers.
Avista Utilities offers energy efficiency incentives for electric efficiency, natural gas efficiency, and fuel-switching projects. Opportunities available include:
The Demand Controlled Ventilation Incentive Program provides incentives at a rate of $0.25 per square foot with a cap of 2,500 square feet per sensor.
The Side-Stream Filtration Incentive Program pays $18 per ton or 50% of installed cost, whichever is less, for implementing a cooling tower water filtration scheme.
Vending Machine Controller Rebates offer a $90 rebate per controller.
The EnergySmart Program offers free audits and incentives of 20% to 100% of the cost of energy-saving measures.
Site-Specific Incentives provide custom incentives based on the first-year energy savings and include measures such as HVAC equipment and controls.
The Commercial Lighting Incentive Program offers varying incentives depending on the type of replacement lamp.
Food Service Equipment Rebates provide a business and occupation tax credit for purchase of certain energy-efficient commercial appliances.
Commercial HVAC Variable Frequency Drive Incentives provide $80 to $100 per horsepower for primary pumps and fans depending on the type of equipment installed.
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Certification provides an incentive for LEED certified projects of $1.25 per conditioned square foot for LEED-NC and $0.25 per conditioned square foot for LEED-EB facilities.
Premium Efficiency Motors Rebate offers rebates and incentives for installation of qualifying premium electric motors.
Power Management for Personal Computer (PC) Networks offers a $10 incentive per controlled PC for installation of software solutions that provide qualifying energy management and reporting functions.
An LED Traffic Signals program provides a cash incentive of $10 to $55 per signal to reduce the initial cost of LED traffic signals.
The Refrigerated Warehouse Incentive Program offers incentives for a variety of efficiency measures, including fast-acting doors, dock seals, variable frequency drives, fan motors, bi-level lighting, and more.
Steam Trap Replacement/Repair Rebates are offered for repair or replacement of failed steam traps.
Electric to Natural Gas Water Heater Conversion Rebates provide $150 for converting an existing electric water heater to an energy-efficient natural gas water heater.
Commercial Clothes Washer Rebates of $250 to $400 are offered for purchase and installation of ENERGY STAR® or CEE-certified commercial clothes washers. Rebate amounts depend on the type of equipment.
A Green Motors Initiative, in conjunction with the Green Motors Practices Group, provides incentives of $1 per horsepower for repair/rewinds that improve reliability and efficiency of NEVA-rated motors from 15 horsepower to 500 horsepower. Incentives are paid as an instant rebate on the invoice from a participating service center.
A Retro-Commissioning Program offers incentives to customers and qualified commissioning agents. Qualifying buildings must have a minimum of 50,000 square feet of conditioned space, be older than five years, have an energy management control system (EMCS), have an Energy Use Index (EUI) greater than 100% of normal according to Avista's EUI calculator, and have a minimum average occupancy rate of not less than 50% over the previous two years.
PacifiCorp/Pacific Power offers two programs that Federal facilities can take advantage of:
Washington Energy FinAnswer provides cash incentives for energy efficiency retrofits and new construction equal to $0.12 per kWh of projected annual savings plus $50 per average monthly on-peak kW reduced. Incentives are capped at 50% of the project cost. The program also incorporates a variety of engineering services, including facility energy analysis, detailed design assistance, competitive financing, commissioning, and post-installation savings verification.
Washington FinAnswer Express provides rebates for energy-efficient lighting, HVAC, motors, and other upgrades. The incentives depend on the equipment installed and are capped at 50% of measure costs. The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission recently approved changes to the FinAnswer Express and Energy FinAnswer programs in Washington.
Several Public Utility Districts (PUDs) and cities in Washington offer energy efficiency programs to their commercial customers. The following table lists current programs for the largest PUDs (winter peak demand greater than 1,000 MW). The Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy (DSIRE) contains additional PUD programs.
| Name of Public Utility District | Programs Offered |
|---|---|
| Snohomish County PUD No 1 |
|
| PUD No 1 of Clark County |
|
| City of Tacoma Public Utilities |
|
| PUD No 1 of Cowlitz County |
|
| PUD No 1 of Chelan County |
|
| PUD No 1 of Pend Oreille County |
|
| PUD No 3 of Mason County |
|
| City of Port Angeles (PDF 123 KB) |
|
Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) offers numerous energy conservation programs, including:
BPA provides funding for various energy efficiency activities to utilities in its service territory through its Conservation Rate Credit (CRC) and the Energy Conservation Agreement (ECA). As of September 30, 2009, the ECA replaces the Conservation Acquisition Agreement (CAA).
BPA's Technical Services Proposal program offers customers the opportunity to submit a proposal for energy efficiency technical services in the agricultural, commercial, or industrial sectors. The project should be instrumental in the implementation of an energy efficiency project under one of BPA's conservation programs. A technical service proposal generally consists of (but is not limited to) energy audits, feasibility studies, plant assessments, conservation project identification, implementation project proposal development, and measurement and verification tasks at agricultural, commercial, or industrial facilities.
BPA's Commercial and Industrial Lighting program for energy-efficient lighting is available through public utilities participating in the BPA program.
BPA's Energy Smart Design program offers incentives for new, small offices via participating BPA utilities.
BPA offers energy efficiency retrofits to Federal agencies under its Federal Conservation Acquisition Program. In 2009, program funding was renewed through September 2011. Under this program, BPA identifies and implements energy-saving measures at Federal facilities. Federal facilities located areas that are served 100% with BPA power receive all design, engineering support, and contracting services free of charge, as well as financial incentives. In addition, a financing option is available to help Federal agencies meet cost-sharing requirements. Projects at sites served by utilities procuring only a portion of their power from BPA may still take advantage of services but must reimburse BPA for its costs. Interested Federal agencies can contact Frank Brown at febrown@bpa.gov or 206-220-6774 for more information.
What load management/demand response options are available to me?
Puget Sound Energy offers the Voluntary Load Curtailment Service Rider (PDF 135 KB), which provides credit to large customers for voluntarily reducing energy usage during peak periods. PSE notifies customers one day ahead of curtailment opportunities indicating the curtailment period and the credit per kWh offered (equal to 50% of the current market price). To accept the offer, customers respond by pledging to curtail a specific load. Eligibility is limited to customers capable of curtailing at least 500 kW for a minimum of one hour. PSE's Personal Energy Management for Business program provides customers with nearly real-time access to hourly electricity consumption data for their facilities via the Internet.
Seattle City Light offers a Variable Rate General Service under which peak and off-peak electricity charges for each day are defined based on daily electricity market prices.
PacifiCorp/Pacific Power offers the Energy Exchange, an Internet-based voluntary demand reduction program. PacifiCorp posts a price for each hour load reductions are needed and customers respond by pledging to curtail a specified amount of load. Participants are paid the posted price per unit of measured energy reduction in each hour of the curtailment. Eligibility is limited to customers with at least 1 MW of connected load.
BPA offers the Demand Exchange (DEMX), an Internet-based, load reduction bidding program. Participants are alerted to hourly, one-day, and two-day price signals associated with peak load events and are able to post their willingness to participate at a price. While eligibility is limited to participants able to curtail and/or generate at least 1 MW, BPA assists customers with smaller loads to aggregate with other, similarly situated customers to meet this criterion.
What distributed energy resource options are available to me?
Numerous public utility districts in Washington offer rebates and/or loans for solar water heating and/or photovoltaic installations. Consult the Database of State Incentives for Renewable Energy for information on programs that offer incentives for renewable distributed generation.
Using revenues generated from the sales of Green Tags, the Bonneville Environmental Foundation, a not-for-profit organization, accepts proposals for funding for renewable energy projects located in the Pacific Northwest.
Puget Sound Energy's Renewable Energy Advantage Program (REAP) provides incentives from $0.12 to $0.54 cents per kWh generated to eligible customers using solar photovoltaics, wind, or anaerobic digesters to generate their own electricity.
Are there energy efficiency programs sponsored by the state government?
For information on state-sponsored energy efficiency programs, contact the Energy Policy Division at the Department of Commerce.
What additional opportunities are available to me?
Pacific Northwest investor- and publicly-owned utilities, as well as public representatives, have banded together to offer energy efficiency market transformation initiatives under the auspices of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA), a nonprofit organization. Federal customers should be aware of NEEA initiatives that could benefit their facilities, such as commissioning of public buildings, building operator certification, efficient building practices, Lighting Design Lab, Northwest Energy Education Institute, Compressed Air Challenge, and Motor Drive Power.
Federal customers whose utilities have area-wide contracts through the General Services Administration (GSA) (e.g., Cascade Natural Gas) may be able to take advantage of third-party financed energy efficiency projects called utility energy service contracts (UESCs). Information is available through the GSA Energy Center of Expertise Library. Federal facilities should contact their account executive to determine the level of each utility's participation.
NOTE: Energy efficiency funds and demand response programs are updated at least annually. Please contact the FEMP webmaster if changes are needed between updates.