Improving Energy Efficiency Programs Improves Health for New Jersey Families
By Ruth Ann Norton, President and CEO
The need for expanded access to energy efficiency solutions in New Jersey is greater now than ever as summer temperatures soar and utility costs continue to rise, putting pressure on the electrical grid to keep up and on residents to keep cool without breaking the bank. This is especially true for low-income families who often live in older housing that is plagued by myriad health and safety hazards that are barriers to participation in the state’s current energy efficiency offerings. While New Jersey has one of the strongest energy efficiency program portfolios in the country, there are structural changes needed to ensure that every household can equally reap the financial and health benefits afforded by energy upgrades.
The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) has cost-effective Clean Energy Programs to deliver energy efficiency services such as insulation upgrades, air-sealing, and high efficiency equipment replacements to homes and businesses across the state. However, if there are significant health and safety hazards in a home, such as mold or moisture, old wiring, or a leaky roof, the home is often deferred from the program because of restrictions on the use of funds to address the issues. Homes with these kinds of hazards are most often found in low-income and disinvested communities with older housing stock and less historic support.1
Addressing housing-based health and safety hazards in conjunction with implementing energy efficiency upgrades brings public benefits such as reduced childhood asthma, healthier families, and more stable neighborhoods.2 But when program resources are limited and administratively burdensome, the families and communities that need them the most are left behind. These challenges hinder New Jersey’s Comfort Partners program in serving its target population of low-income households throughout the state.
A recent analysis by the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) found that Comfort Partners’ spending cap on health and safety measures has not changed in years, and there is no formula to raise the cap to account for inflation or other factors.3
The current program requires approval for spending over $2,500 on barrier remediation which adds time, increases costs, and disincentivizes partners from seeking out projects in areas of greatest need. BPU could raise the approval threshold to significantly decrease the administrative burden for spending energy efficiency dollars more effectively and ensure the state’s most vulnerable residents are not excluded from these valuable programs.
Additionally, the state or BPU should dedicate additional funding for high-cost barrier remediation that otherwise would exceed the Comfort Partners $7,500 per project cap for health and safety measures. For example, healthy housing grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and proceeds from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) auction can be aligned with Comfort Partners funding to address health and safety interventions that are above current program limits.
The Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) Whole-House Model comprehensively addresses health and safety hazards in the home alongside energy efficiency services, resulting in greater health, economic, and energy benefits to residents and cost savings for implementers and funding entities. Furthermore, aligning multiple programs, braiding available resources, and coordinating service delivery reduces the burden on the household. It is the most cost-effective and comprehensive approach to address energy efficiency and home repair interventions in low-income communities.
GHHI has been working with the BPU to implement a Whole-House Pilot Program in Trenton, focusing on addressing the homes that have been deferred by the Comfort Partners program due to high health and safety needs. The cost to address the hazards in these homes was typically between $9,000 and $13,000, well above the $7,500 cap. While the pilot has shown promise by serving these families, program enrollment was low because Comfort Partners providers face difficulty engaging families when they cannot be confident funds will be available to address the household’s full scope of work. Updating the program structure to address safety and efficiency needs more comprehensively will ensure families can enroll in the programs with confidence.
Energy efficiency offers a proven pathway to deliver health, economic, social, and climate benefits. Ensuring these benefits reach residents of all income levels is the goal of the BPU Comfort Partners program, but it will only work if vital advancements are made to ensure programs can address the health and safety needs in the most vulnerable communities.
ENDNOTES
1 Energy Efficiency as Energy Justice: Addressing racial inequities through investments in people and
places htps://www.greenandhealthyhomes.org/wp-content/uploads/Energy-Efficiency-as-Energy-
Justice_Final.pdf
2 Green & Healthy Homes Initiative, 2010. htps://www.greenandhealthyhomes.org/publication/identified-barriersopportuni
ties-make-housing-green-healthy-weatherization/
3 Kelley Riggins, Johnson, and Bradley-Wright. Comfort Partners Program Review. ACEEE. June 2025.
https://publicaccess.bpu.state.nj.us/CaseSummary.aspx?case_id=2113689