Engagement on Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and Inflation Reduction Act – Public Comments and More

Since the Fall of 2021, the Green Bank has provided public comments to various initiatives resulting from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (“IIJA”) (a.k.a., Bipartisan Infrastructure Law), Inflation Reduction Act (“IRA”), and more, through agencies of the U.S. Government. The following is a breakdown of Green Bank engagement.

US Environmental Protection Agency

The Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (“GGRF”) is new initiative administered by the Environmental Protection Agency to provide $27 billion in funding to support the national roll-out of the green banking model, including supporting deployment of clean energy and energy efficiency technology. Learn more about this opportunity, and how the Connecticut Green Bank is working to attract these federal funds to help support the Connecticut green economy!

US Department of Energy

Communities Local Energy Action Plan (“Communities LEAP”) – the pilot Justice 40 Initiative program of the DOE, in support of the Greater Bridgeport Community Enterprises, the Green Bank and Operation Fuel collaborated on public comments and a winning application, including:

Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs – a key initiative of the DOE to advance hydrogen and fuel cells, the Green Bank provided public comment:
- Public Comment – March 21, 2022
Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund Capitalization Grant Program – a finance initiative of the DOE, supported by research from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, the Green Bank was featured in national research report and provided public comment:
- National Research – March 31, 2022 press release from Secretary Granholm, featuring report entitled “Long-Term Performance of Energy Efficiency Loan Portfolios” including the Green Bank’s Smart-E Loan Program (https://www.energy.gov/articles/doe-releases-new-study-confirming-strong-performance-energy-efficiency-loans)
- Public Comment – May 6, 2022

Loan Programs Office (“LPO”) – a finance initiative of the DOE, the Green Bank invited the LPO to present at a Board of Directors meeting and provided public comment:
- Board Meeting – March 25, 2022 featuring the LPO (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TPb7AHRWFhg&t=6300s)
- Public Comment – July 1, 2022
- Comprehensive Plan – Board of Director approval of State Energy Financing Institutions of the LPO inclusion within the Comprehensive Plan of the Green Bank (July 21, 2023)

Battery Recycling – an initiative to support the lifecycle of battery storage technologies, as a co-administrator of Energy Storage Solutions, the Green Bank provided public comment:
- Public Comment – October 17, 2022
Grid Innovation Program (40103(B)) – Topic Area 3 – Area of Interest 2
- Localizing Innovative Equitable Modern Grids – January 13, 2023
Enhanced Manufacturing and Workforce Development – August 14, 2023

US Department of Treasury

Community Reinvestment Act (“CRA”) – an initiative to update the 1977 civil rights policy to enable FDIC insured financial institutions to invest in less than 80% area median income communities, with Connecticut’s “vulnerable communities” definition (i.e., per Public Act 20-05) including CRA-eligible communities and the Green Bank’s goal of “by 2025 no less than 40 percent of investment and benefits in vulnerable communities,” the Green Bank provided public comment:
- Public Comment – August 5, 2022
- Public Comments – by Department of Banking on August, 2022

Inflation Reduction Act Tax Credit Programs – various tax credit programs provided through Treasury, of relevance to Connecticut, the Green Bank provided public comment:

US Department of Housing and Urban Development

Green and Resilient Retrofit Program (“GRRP”) – an initiative to improve the resilience of affordable housing, the Green Bank provided public comment:
- Public Comment – October 27, 2022

Projects Led by Partners that are Supported by the Green Bank

DOE Grid Resilience and Innovation Partnerships (GRIP) – Topic Area 2 (Smart Grids)
- Led by the University of Connecticut – REINFORCE: Northeastern-Puerto Rico Energy Innovation Alliance for Outage Anticipation, Response and Self-healing Control During Abnormal Weather Events
- Led by Eversource – Accelerating Decarbonization with AMI-Enabled Volt VAR Optimization in Disadvantaged Communities
DOE Buildings Energy Efficiency Frontiers & Innovation Technologies (BENEFIT)
- Led by the University of Connecticut – Equitable Deployment of Carbon-Responsive Operation of Battery Energy Storage Systems for Achieving Net-Zero Emissions in Connecticut and Beyond
DOE Resilient and Efficient Codes Implementation
- Led by Clean Energy Group – Climate Resilient Energy Codes for Multifamily Affordable Housing
- Clean Energy Group – wins proposal supporting Connecticut’s efforts to develop Climate Resilient Stretch Code for affordable housing and disadvantaged communities.