The City of Austin has ambitious building energy efficiency codes, policies, and programs in place.

Building Codes

In February 2007, the city council passed the Austin Climate Protection Plan, calling for the drafting of new building codes consistent with reducing energy used in single-family homes by 65% and all other public and private buildings by 75% by 2015 (see Resolution No. 20070215-23). Accordingly, the Zero-Energy Capable Homes (ZECH) Task Force was designated to draft recommendations and progressively-increasing goals for the program. Furthermore, an Energy Efficiency Retrofits (EER) Task Force was created in December 2007 to examine strategies for reducing energy

The City of Asheville offers rebates for building permits and plan reviews for certain renewable energy technologies and green building certifications for homes and mixed-use commercial buildings. Rebates for building permit fees may apply to residences with the following designations:

• Green Built North Carolina / HealthyBuilt Home Certification ($100)
• Energy Star Rating ($100)
• Geothermal heat pumps ($50)
• Solar-energy systems ($50)
• Wind turbines ($50)
• Storm water (gray water) collection device for reuse in yard sprinkler or elsewhere ($50)

Regular fees must be paid in full but will be rebated upon certification. These rebates also apply to mixed-use commercial buildings if they

The Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) offers rebates of $3,000 for residential geothermal heat pump systems and up to $4,500 for non-residential geothermal heat pump systems. The residential program offers a flat per system incentive ($3,000) for systems with up to 10 tons of refrigeration capacity (1 ton is equivalent to 12,000 BTUs). The non-residential program offers $180 per ton for systems of less than 25 tons and $90 per ton for systems from 25 - 50 tons. It is important to note that these system size/capacity ranges are exclusive, not additive in nature. For example, a 37.5 ton system would

The New Solar Homes Partnership (NSHP) is administered by the California Energy Commission (CEC) and provides incentives for solar on new home construction. To be eligible for the NSHP incentive, the home must receive electricity from one of the following investor-owned utilities: Pacific Gas and Electric Company, Southern California Edison Company, San Diego Gas and Electric Company, and Bear Valley Electric Service.

Launched on January 2, 2007, the New Solar Homes Partnership (NSHP) is a 10-year, $400 million program to encourage solar in new homes by working with builders and developers to incorporate into the homes high levels of energy

In August 2007 Kentucky established the Incentives for Energy Independence Act (IEIA) to promote the development of renewable energy and alternative fuel facilities, energy efficient buildings, alternative fuel vehicles, research & development activities, and other energy initiatives. For renewable energy facilities, IEIA provides incentives to companies that build or renovate facilities that utilize renewable energy. A renewable energy facility is defined as one that generates at least 50 kW of electricity from solar power or at least 1 MW from wind power, biomass, landfill gas, hydropower or similar renewable resources. The electricity must be sold to an unrelated party. The

In 2003, the Dallas City Council passed a resolution requiring that all new municipal buildings larger than 10,000 square feet be constructed to meet U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver Certification standards. In 2006 the green building program policy was updated, increasing the requirement for new city-funded public works and transportation facilities under the 2006 bond program to LEED Gold Certification.

The first building completed under this policy was the Jack Evans Police Headquarters, which obtained LEED Silver certification in December 2005. As of 2015, Dallas has 26 LEED certified facilities: 14 silver (includes

In 2006 the Town of Riverhead on Long Island enacted a special allowance in its building permit fee structure to provide a discount to people wishing to install energy conservation devices on residential or commercial buildings. The provision in the town code applies to any energy conservation device "installed in or on a structure which qualifies for any federal, state or local tax exemption, tax credit or tax rebate", but explicitly mentions solar panels as eligible for favorable treatment. The original law authorized a flat permitting fee of $150, which still generally applies, but the law was amended in December

Clay Electric Cooperative (CEC) provides a rebate of $0.01 per BTU output to its residential members when they purchase qualified solar water heaters. This rebate is capped at 60,000 BTUs per system, or $600. Eligible solar water heaters can be either passive or active systems. The proposed solar system must meet Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC) specifications and be installed by a contractor certified to install solar water heating systems by the Florida Department of Professional Regulation's Construction Industry Licensing Board.

Rebates are available only to Clay Electric Cooperative (CEC) residential members who are making efficiency upgrades to primary residence served by CEC. To qualify for the insulation rebate, the existing level of insulation must be less than R-19. Only existing homes and facilities can partake in the window film, ceiling insulation and spray foam insulation offerings, not new construction.

Contact CEC for any further information on these offerings or visit the program web site.

Find more information on the guidelines of this program here.

In August 2007 Kentucky established the Incentives for Energy Independence Act to promote the development of renewable energy and alternative fuel facilities, energy efficient buildings, alternative fuel vehicles, research & development activities and other energy initiatives. For renewable energy facilities, the bill provides incentives to companies that build or renovate facilities that utilize renewable energy, which may include:

•  Tax Credits: up to 100% of the Kentucky income tax or the limited liability entity tax
• Sales and Use Tax:  tax incentives of up to 100%
• Wage assessment: incentives of up