Portland, Ore., —The State Energy Office within the South Carolina Office of Regulatory Staff (State Energy Office) has awarded Earth Advantage a contract to develop and implement a statewide voluntary home energy labeling program. Leveraging the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Home Energy Score™, Earth Advantage will be responsible for crafting and managing a program to educate South Carolina residents about the energy performance of their homes, encourage energy-efficient home upgrades, promote energy conservation, and facilitate transparency in real estate transactions through the availability of verifiable, standardized energy reports.
Home energy labeling programs are an important tool that can be used by organizations to meet energy targets. Energy labels like Home Energy Score provide residents with a greater understanding of how their homes use energy and offer a roadmap for making upgrades to improve efficiency and comfort while reducing costs. They also provide a foundation for factoring a home’s energy performance into real estate valuation and lending practices, leading to increased value and demand for more efficient homes.
“The State Energy Office is prepared to implement a state Home Energy Labeling program funded by the US DOE’s State Energy Program. Implementing this program is a key component of our state’s strategy for informing South Carolinians about their homes’ energy use and cost,” said State Energy Office Director Sara Bazemore. “The Energy Office looks forward to working with Earth Advantage to launch a successful program that will benefit South Carolina homeowners.”
Earth Advantage has been helping states develop and implement home energy labeling programs and policies for more than a decade. A national Home Energy Score partner and quality assurance provider, Earth Advantage currently supports programs in Oregon, California and Colorado, and has been recognized by DOE multiple times for national leadership, innovation, and scoring results. Additionally, Earth Advantage is the creator and administrator of the Green Building Registry ® (GBR), a national database that integrates with home energy labeling programs across the country. GBR makes home performance data publicly available so that home buyers can compare the energy use of multiple properties to make informed purchasing decisions.
“It’s encouraging to see more and more states adopting Home Energy Score to drive demand for more efficient homes,” said David Heslam, Executive Director at Earth Advantage. “We’re proud to be partnering with South Carolina to develop and launch a program specifically tailored to meet their goals.”
About Earth Advantage:
Earth Advantage is a non-profit organization helping to advance a more informed and humane housing market. We work to ensure the US housing market recognizes the elements of homes that create climate risk and values the characteristics of homes that provide climate solutions. Our teams partner with entities across the country to develop tangible, systemic solutions for climate-friendly housing. For more information visit www.earthadvantage.org