Agency Previously Halted Popular Program That Was Colorado Success Story
Public Comment Period Open for 60 Days
Colorado U.S. Senator Michael Bennet is encouraging Coloradans and local governments to weigh in on the benefits and potential areas for improvement regarding Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) Programs. The Federal Housing Finance Agency opened a court-ordered 60-day public comment period on PACE today.
“PACE created jobs, saved energy and reduced costs for Colorado homeowners until it was brought to a screeching halt,” Bennet said. “Coloradans who have firsthand experience with this innovative program should take a moment to weigh in so we can find a way to get it past bureaucratic delays and back on track.”
Coloradans can submit their comments online by clicking here.
The PACE financing concept was established by local communities to help homeowners overcome the high upfront costs of energy efficiency and renewable energy upgrades by allowing property owners to borrow funds from participating local and state governments. Those funds are then repaid over a multi-year period through an assessment attached to their property tax payments. Before PACE programs were blocked by the FHFA in 2010, PACE financing had helped hundreds of Colorado homeowners install renewable energy systems and improve energy efficiency.
Bennet has led the push to keep PACE Programs going in the past and plans to do so again this year. In November, at a Senate Banking Committee hearing, he asked FHFA to work to remove bureaucratic hurdles standing in the way of PACE programs.