March 29, 2006: Efficiency Resource Standards Could Bring Substantial Savings
WASHINGTON - An Energy Efficiency Resource Standard (EERS) could save as much energy as improving U.S. vehicles' fuel economy to 40 mpg, according to a report issued by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE). The report, "Energy Efficiency Resource Standards: Experience and Recommendations," profiles energy efficiency resource standard policies in 10 states and four European countries, and concludes that implementation of similar policies at the federal level or in additional states could reduce nationwide energy use by nearly 5 percent in 2020 and save consumers and businesses about $170 billion from efficiency measures implemented over the 2007-2020 period.
"An EERS is perhaps the single most effective energy efficiency policy the federal government could adopt today," said ACEEE Executive Director Steven Nadel, lead author of the report. "To put these energy savings in perspective, they are about triple the energy efficiency savings of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 that was signed into law last summer."