Montgomery Council Becomes First in Region to Adopt Home Energy Loan Program
Councilmember Berliner’s Bill to Provide Zero Interest Loans For Energy-Efficient/Renewable Energy Home Retrofits
ROCKVILLE, Md., April 14, 2009—The Montgomery County Council today unanimously approved legislation proposed by Council Vice President Roger Berliner (D—District 1) to create a County Home Energy Loan Program (HELP). The legislation makes Montgomery County the first county in the Washington metropolitan region to adopt such a program, and one of a handful of jurisdictions in the nation to adopt such a measure.
The legislation was co-sponsored by five other members of the eight-member Council (Councilmembers Marc Elrich, Valerie Ervin, Nancy Floreen, George Leventhal and Duchy Trachtenberg).
“This measure will help our homeowners reduce their skyrocketing utility bills and their carbon footprint at the same time, while putting people to work in the new green economy,” said Councilmember Berliner. “It has broad support within the environmental and business community and it should impose almost no cost on the County thanks to the good work of Congressman Chris Van Hollen and the federal stimulus bill.”
Under HELP, a homeowner would voluntarily obtain a home energy audit from a certified auditor to identify the universe of cost effective, energy efficient and renewable energy measures that could be taken. The homeowner would then take the results of the audit to the County, which would provide a zero interest loan to make the improvements.
The HELP program is among the top priorities of the County’s Sustainability Working Group, where Councilmember Berliner co-chaired the Residential Energy Efficiency Subcommittee.
The importance of HELP is the role local government plays. The loan would be secured through a lien on the homeowner’s property. This is the critical piece: the loan, which would be repaid over 15 years as a voluntary additional line item on the property tax, would run with the property—not with the homeowner that took out the loan. This allows a homeowner to entertain a more robust home retrofit as long as the annual loan costs are equal to, or less than, the savings on their utility bill. Monies could also be borrowed for the installation of renewable energy devices once the home is energy efficient.
This Saturday and Sunday the Go Green America Expo will be held at the Montgomery County Agricultural Center in Gaithersburg, MD. We will be there all weekend showcasing our solar water heating systems and answering questions. Tickets are normally $10 but I have a limited number of 
