Mass. seen as most energy efficient, R.I. ranks No. 6

RHODE ISLAND improved one place to No. 6 on the ACEEE's seventh State Energy Efficiency Scorecard, thanks in large part to its strong utility and public benefits programs and policies, and building energy codes. / COURTESY THE AMERICAN COUNCIL FOR AN ENERGY-EFFICIENT ECONOMY
RHODE ISLAND improved one place to No. 6 on the ACEEE's seventh State Energy Efficiency Scorecard, thanks in large part to its strong utility and public benefits programs and policies, and building energy codes. / COURTESY THE AMERICAN COUNCIL FOR AN ENERGY-EFFICIENT ECONOMY

WASHINGTON – Massachusetts was named the most energy-efficient state for the third year in a row, according to the seventh State Energy Efficiency Scorecard produced by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy. Rhode Island was ranked No. 6 on the list, an improvement from last year’s No. 7 ranking, with special mention of the recent adoption of building energy codes.
The scorecard ranks states by their policies and programs in relation to homes, businesses, industries and transportation, calling out special initiatives as well as states making improvements in efficiency. At the same time, the list notes which states are falling short on their efficiency efforts.
The top 10 states in the 2013 ranking, in order, are: Massachusetts, California, New York, Oregon, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Maryland and Illinois. The Bay State was lauded for its Green Communities Act. The five states that need to improve the most are: North Dakota, Wyoming, South Dakota, Alaska and Mississippi, although Mississippi was also on the list of the five most-improved states, along with West Virginia, Maine, Kansas and Ohio.
The report on Rhode Island highlighted six specific areas in which the Ocean State was encouraging energy efficiency:

  • Customer energy-efficiency programs.
  • Energy-efficiency-resource standards.
  • Alternative business models.
  • Reward structures for successful energy-efficiency programs.
  • Energy efficiency as a resource
  • Evaluation, measurement and verification.

The state tied with Vermont for the second-highest score (18.5 points out of 20) in the utility and public benefits programs and policies, one-half point behind Massachusetts and tied for second-highest score with Washington (behind category-leader) in building energy codes.

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