46 | May 2022
ty or energy office to determine what
programs they may have in place to
help you get started. Many local gas
and electric utilities are also provid-
ing home energy audit and weather-
ization services.
The Department of Energy's En-
ergy Saver website offers even more
tips on how to improve your home's
efficiency.
of Columbia, and the five US territo-
ries. Thanks to the Bipartisan Infra-
structure Law, many more Americans
will get the weatherization assistance
they need.
Here's how to apply for weather-
ization assistance.
If you don't qualify for WAP, you
can still weatherize your home. Con-
tact your county or state sustainabili-
percent in favor of spending federal
money for building more electric ve-
hicle charging stations in the US up
to 89 percent for providing tax credits
to Americans who install clean energy
systems in their homes.
"This investment is key to lower-
ing the energy burden among low-in-
come households, which spend an
average of nearly 14 percent of their
annual income on energy costs, com-
pared to 3 percent for higher income
earners," says the U.S. Department
of Energy (DOE), the agency that ad-
ministers the program. Many house-
holds find that they must cut back
on health care, medicine, groceries,
and childcare to pay for heating. DOE
calculates that those that weatherize
should save an average of $283 each
year in direct energy costs. But the
benefits of weatherization extend be-
yond energy savings.
Along with turning homes into
healthier environments, resulting in
fewer missed days of school and work
and lower out-of-pocket medical ex-
penses at an average of about $514
per year, WAP also supports roughly
8,500 good-paying jobs each year.
This strengthens the local econo-
my and empowers the people in the
communities it serves.
And it is cost-effective. For every
dollar of federal investment, the pro-
gram generates $1.72 in energy-
related benefits and $2.78 in other
benefits. "The returns on these in-
vestments can transform communi-
ties," DOE reports. They also align
with several DOE priorities: achieving
net-zero carbon emissions econo-
my-wide by 2050, addressing his-
torical energy and environmental
injustices, and expanding the clean
energy workforce.
Since Congress established WAP
in 1976, the program has served
more than 7 million households in
every county and state, the District
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