The Washington State Department of Commerce has been awarded a $2.2 million grant from the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program, a funding opportunity from the Office of State and Community Energy Programs at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). We expect these funds to become available to communities in 2024.

Commerce will sub-grant the majority of this award to build capacity for the transition to clean energy in underserved, climate justice communities. The EECBG program will provide funding for communities to participate in the clean energy transformation underway in our state. Communities can use sub-grants to hire consultants to develop energy conservation plans, conduct energy audits on commercial and residential buildings, and establish education and outreach programs to address energy burden.

• The EECBG program focus directly addresses a cross-cutting issue of the Washington State Energy Strategy: Increased resources for planning, data analysis, and outreach by addressing the inadequate funding and staff resources in many smaller jurisdictions, for planning a transition to clean energy.
• The activities to be funded align with these Key Actions of the state energy strategy:
  • Provide needed funding for communities to participate in the clean energy transformation.
  • Replace the direct consumption of fossil fuels…with high-efficiency electric heat pumps for space and water heating
  • Strengthen and deepen energy efficiency programs and standards to focus on avoiding and reducing emissions

These planning and education activities will provide grantees concrete data on which to make decisions about the cost and benefits of potential energy efficiency and emissions reduction measures. Additionally, EECBG grantees will have the benefit of getting familiar with the processes and support services offered by the Commerce grant management team, building confidence and skills that can help them be more successful in applying for and administering future grant programs. The Commerce Energy Division expects to direct the EECBG grantees to Washington state’s other, ongoing grant programs under which they can apply for further project funding.