Recent News
admin October 12, 2023
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management announced the most restrictive offshore oil and gas leasing plan ever last week. It proposes only three lease sales through 2029, the bare minimum under federal law. This sparked pointed criticism from the energy sector and members of Congress, including from within the President's own party. Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee Chair Joe Manchin said "it makes no sense at all to actively be limiting our energy production while our adversaries are weaponizing energy around the world." He called it a "failure of leadership" and promised "to do everything in my power to hold this Administration accountable."...
admin October 12, 2023
Governors from 25 states have collectively pledged to install at least 20 million heat pumps by 2030, with the aim of "ensuring at least 40% of benefits flow to disadvantaged communities." If carried out, the pledge would effectively quadruple the number of heat pumps in use throughout constituent states....
admin October 12, 2023
The U.S. Department of Transportation has issued a notice that it is adopting the Department of Energy's categorical exclusion of electric vehicle charging stations under the National Environmental Policy Act to use in DOT programs and funding opportunities administered by DOT. This means that a project involving EV charging stations will not be subject to an environmental impact statement, an environmental assessment, or other environmental review under NEPA....
admin October 12, 2023
Last week, NEFI attended two important hearings in the U.S. House of Representatives on home energy and consumer choice. These hearings were held as the Biden Administration is advancing numerous policies through several agencies that aim to restrict access to non-electric home appliances, including furnaces and boilers....
admin October 12, 2023
The Notice of Proposed Rulemaking Sets Forth Prevailing Wage and Apprenticeship Requirements for Federal Tax Deductions for Commercial Building Efficiency Improvements and Certain Other IRA Tax Incentives...
admin October 12, 2023
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has published guidance for contractors and homeowners with respect to the new federal tax credit for a qualified home energy audit. The amount of the credit is 30% of the cost of the audit, up to a maximum of $150. This new credit is part of a broader list of home efficiency tax credits offered under Section 25C of the Internal Revenue Code, as modified by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022....
admin October 12, 2023
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration has published a set of Frequently Asked Questions on the agency's hazardous materials incident reporting regulations in 49 CFR §171.15 and §171.16....
admin October 12, 2023
NEFI's Jim Collura was recently asked to join a panel of industry regulator experts for a pre-meeting event at the 2023 Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors Association (PHCC) legislative conference....
admin August 10, 2023
On Friday, the U.S. DOE issued a lengthy proposal to revise the efficiency standards for residential water heaters. It aims to “accelerate deployment” of electric heat pump water heaters and require higher efficiency ratings for all other water heater models. If the rule is finalized and survives court challenges, the changes would take effect in 2029....
admin August 10, 2023
In a surprise move, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released guidance to assist states in rolling-out new federally funded rebate programs for residential electrification and efficiency improvements. The announcement comes despite a recent letter from the DOE notifying states the rebate guidance would be delayed. Among the documents released is a 100-page list of requirements that State energy offices must follow in drafting implementation plans for the two rebate programs. States must now begin work writing their plans, which are required to be submitted to the DOE before they can receive funding and begin offering the rebates....
admin August 09, 2023
Today’s world is becoming increasingly more divided and those of us in the PHCP/PVF industry are not at all shielded from the divisiveness by living and working within our own bubble....
admin June 26, 2023
On Thursday, June 22, NEFI along with its industry partners submitted formal responses to the U.S. EPA's proposal to exclude furnaces and central air conditioners from the ENERGY STAR program....
admin April 20, 2023
The U.S. Court of Appeals of the Ninth Circuit has struck down a City of Berkeley, California regulation that prohibits the installation of natural gas piping within newly constructed buildings. The decision in California Restaurant Assn. v. City of Berkeley held that the federal Energy Policy and Conservation Act preempts enforcement of the city regulation. This development has ramifications for government efforts to ban fossil fuel appliances and restrict consumer choice elsewhere in the nation. The three-judge panel ruled that the Act expressly preempts State and local regulations concerning the energy use of many natural gas appliances, including those used in household and restaurant kitchens. Instead of directly banning those appliances in new buildings, the City of Berkeley tried to evade preemption by enacting a building code that prohibits natural gas piping into those buildings, rendering the gas appliances useless. The panel held that, by its plain text and structure, the Act’s preemption provision encompasses building codes that regulate natural gas use by covered products. By preventing such appliances from using natural gas, the Berkeley building code did exactly that. The panel reversed a district court decision dismissing the court case and remanded the case back to that court for further proceedings. This decision has significant repercussions for State and local governments attempting to ban or limit the use of appliances powered by natural gas, liquid heating fuels, and propane. The Act provides that State or local energy conservation standards relating to electricity, water or fossil fuel use must be the same as applicable federal standards. Sean Cota, President of the National Energy & Fuels Institute, applauded the decision. "This ruling restores some sanity in the race to ban non-electric appliances and equipment. This is particularly important now, as the current political trend is to ban any combustion, whether that combustion is 100% renewable or not. We need a mixture of reliable and storable energy sources to power our businesses, heat our homes, and support our economy. The average home with heating fuels stores over 10 Megawatts of energy at no additional cost. Policymakers at all levels of government must follow federal law so there is a uniform national policy that preserves energy reliability and consumer choice."...
admin February 28, 2023
Since President Joe Biden signed the so-called "Inflation Reduction Act" (IRA) into law last year, fuel retailers have been submitting questions to NEFI about the law's new or expanded home energy incentives....
admin February 03, 2023
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is considering a rule to limit biodiesel blends in heating oil and diesel fuel to no more than 20 percent (B20). Your help is needed to defeat this misguided proposal which, if imposed, will make biofuel in heating unprofitable and increase greenhouse gas emissions....
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