The Consortium for Energy Efficiency (CEE) has revised its Residential New Construction Initiative. Among its other revisions, the initiative’s Energy Rating Index (ERI) tier levels were made more stringent to promote increasingly higher thresholds of whole-house energy efficiency. The ERI is a performance option of the initiative. According to the CEE, the “CEE Residential New Construction Initiative was launched in 2018 and leverages a tiered specification framework with performance-based levels designed to grow the market of high-performance new construction in North America. It creates a foundation from which program administrators, utilities, and energy efficiency stakeholders can work collaboratively to drive market transformation in the new home landscape. This works to increase the overall performance of new homes, support the advancement and uptake of future building codes that align with program goals, and promote greater alignment in a traditionally fragmented market.” For more information on the initiative, go to CEE Residential New Construction Initiative CEE commented, “The wide use of ratings and potential for beyond-code construction present a large opportunity for cost-effective savings and market transformation through increased national coordination. The CEE Residential New Construction Initiative implements a tiered specification with performance-based levels that will help drive industry to adopt increasingly efficient new construction practices, support the development and adoption of future building codes that align with program goals, and promote increased stability in a traditionally fragmented market of energy efficiency targets. The Residential New Construction Initiative is designed to create a foundation from which members are able to work collaboratively to transform the landscape for newly built homes.” CEE is a consortium primarily of utility efficiency program administrators from across the United States and Canada. Members leverage individual efforts by working together to accelerate energy efficient products and services in targeted markets. Its members represent utilities in 41 states as well as three providences in Canada. It has adopted a number of initiatives such as the Residential New Construction Initiative that presents a model for member utilities to adopt. Seventy-three CEE utility members have adopted new residential energy efficiency programs with a collective budget of over $100 million. CEE members offering new residential energy efficiency programs are illustrated below. For more information, go to CEE
