Energy.gov

Idaho Power offers incentives for its commercial and industrial customers in Idaho and Oregon to install new equipment above code in participating facilities. They provide rebates for lighting controls, HVAC equipment and controls, building shell measures, and energy control/ventilation equipment. Incentives are designed to average about half the additional cost of energy-efficiency investments.

Idaho Power is offering a $1000 sales rebate to customers who purchase a new ENERGY STAR all-electric manufactured home and connect that home to an Idaho Power residential account. In addition, the sales consultant who sells the home will be eligible for a $200 sales bonus. ENERGY STAR manufactured homes are designed to be more energy efficient than standard ones because they have more insulation in the ceiling, walls and floors, better windows and doors, tighter duct systems and specially designed ventilation systems.

Idaho Power offers a variety of incentives for residential customers in Idaho and Oregon. Rebates from $20 - $50 are offered for select Energy Star qualified appliances covered under the Home Products Program. Meanwhile, the Heating and Cooling Program offers incentives for residential customers who purchase and have installed qualifying air source heat pumps, open loop water source heat pumps, forced air furnaces, and evaporative coolers that meet program requirements.

Idaho residents with homes built or under construction before 2002, or who had a building permit issued before January 1, 2002, qualify for an income tax deduction for 100% of the cost of installing new insulation or other approved energy efficiency improvements in an existing residence. Any insulation added must be in addition to, not a replacement of, existing insulation. Other energy efficiency measures that may be deducted are windows that are more energy efficient than existing windows, storm windows, weather stripping and caulking, and duct sealing and insulation.

In May 2008, Idaho enacted HB 422 (the Energy Efficient State Building Act) to reduce the amount of energy consumed by state facilities. To the extent feasible and practical, all major facility projects must be designed, constructed and certified to meet a target of at least 10% to 30% better efficiency than a comparable building on a similar site. A major facility project is defined as those constructed by a state agency or for use by a state agency that are larger than 5,000 gross square feet of conditioned space.

''Much of the information presented in this summary is drawn from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Building Energy Codes Program and the Building Codes Assistance Project (BCAP). For more detailed information about building energy codes, visit the [http://www.energycodes.gov/states/ DOE] and [http://bcap-ocean.org/ BCAP] websites.''