To amend the Energy Conservation and Production Act to reauthorize the weatherization assistance program.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMr. Coons (for himself, Mrs. Shaheen, Ms. Collins, and Mr. …
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill extends and expands the Weatherization Assistance Program, which helps low-income households reduce their energy costs by improving the energy efficiency of their homes. The bill extends the program's authorization through 2030 (previously set to expire in 2025) and more than doubles the maximum amount of federal assistance available per home from $6,500 to $15,000, with additional funding for renewable energy installations increasing from $3,000 to $6,000.
Who Benefits and How
Low-income homeowners and renters are the primary beneficiaries, as they will receive more comprehensive weatherization services (such as insulation, new windows, HVAC upgrades, and potentially solar panels or heat pumps) that reduce their monthly energy bills. Weatherization contractors, energy efficiency product manufacturers, and HVAC installers benefit from increased business opportunities due to the higher per-home budgets and program extension through 2030. Energy audit companies also gain from new requirements that every home must receive a professional energy assessment before weatherization.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Federal taxpayers bear the increased cost of the higher per-home spending limits, which more than double from current levels. State and local weatherization program administrators face new administrative requirements, as the bill establishes stricter standards for what counts as "fully weatherized" - homes must now complete all recommended energy audit measures and pass a final quality control inspection before being counted as complete. The Department of Energy also gains new responsibilities to monitor market conditions and adjust funding limits as needed.
Key Provisions
- Extends the Weatherization Assistance Program's authorization from 2025 to 2030, ensuring continued federal funding for low-income energy efficiency improvements
- Increases the maximum federal assistance per dwelling unit from $6,500 to $15,000, enabling more comprehensive weatherization work
- Raises the renewable energy equipment cap from $3,000 to $6,000 per home, allowing for more substantial solar panel or heat pump installations
- Creates a formal definition of "fully weatherized" requiring completion of energy audit recommendations and a final quality control inspection
- Grants the Secretary of Energy authority to further increase funding limits based on market conditions like inflation or supply chain constraints
- Changes program metrics to count only "fully weatherized" homes (not partially completed projects), improving accountability
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Reauthorizes and expands the Weatherization Assistance Program through 2030, increases per-dwelling unit funding limits, and establishes clearer standards for weatherization completion
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Expand energy efficiency assistance to low-income households by increasing funding and extending program authorization, while improving accountability through clearer completion standards"
Likely Beneficiaries
- Low-income households (direct recipients of weatherization services)
- Weatherization contractors and installers (increased business from higher per-unit budgets)
- Energy efficiency product manufacturers (increased demand for insulation, HVAC, windows, etc.)
- State and local weatherization agencies (continued program funding through 2030)
Likely Burden Bearers
- Federal taxpayers (increased appropriations for higher per-unit costs)
- Weatherization grantees (stricter completion standards with quality control inspections)
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Energy
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
With respect to a dwelling unit: (A) the recommended measures from an energy audit tool approved by the Secretary or a priority list are installed in that dwelling unit; and (B) the dwelling unit has received a final quality control inspection
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology