Nearly half of 2016 US electricity retail sales impacted by energy efficiency resource standards
Nearly 45 percent of electricity retail sales in 2016 in the United States were affected by an energy efficiency resource standard (EERS), according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and
the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE).
An EERS, the first of which was created in Texas in 1999, establishes financial incentives or non-performance penalties to encourage energy efficiency and lessen electricity sales. EERS targets often
increase over time.
Seven states have created or updated energy efficiency standards in the last year, bringing the total number
of states with policies encouraging energy efficiency to 30 plus the District of Columbia, according to data from EIA. Twenty-four states have implemented an EERS, four states have set voluntary goals, and two
states created energy efficiency pilot programs.
New Hampshire became the latest state adopt an EERS in August of 2016, setting a cumulative savings target of 3.1 percent compared to 2014 delivered electricity levels by 2020.
The final year of EERS programs in the U.S. range from 2020 to 2030. Six states that first created an EERS in 2007 or 2008 have extended expiring targets past 2020.
Targeted electricity savings differ by state, ranging from one percent of prior year sales in Michigan to 2.1 percent of average sales over the prior three years in Illinois.
Florida, Indiana, and Ohio eliminated or suspended existing EERS policies in 2014, but Ohio reinstated theirs in December 2016.
