On August 21, 2024, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced a third round of Sustainable Energy Resources for Consumers (SERC) grant awards supported through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), awarding $53.6 million to 13 states and one territory to conduct whole-home retrofits for low-income households and incorporate energy-saving measures not traditionally included under the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP).
The State Energy Offices of Delaware, Georgia, and the Virgin Islands were among this year's SERC grant recipients. Projects supported by SERC awards include the installation of rooftop solar, battery energy storage systems, cold climate air-source heat pumps, and double-pane windows, among other electrification and resilience-improving technologies. DOE offers WAP Innovation Grants, which in addition to SERC, includes the Enhancement and Innovation (E&I) and Community Scale Pilot Program (CSPP) grants, two additional competitive funding opportunities that may be used in conjunction with WAP formula awards.
Since 2022, three rounds of SERC have been awarded, totaling $75 million in project funds. Many State and Territory Energy Offices are either the designated state entity or work collaboratively with their state entity that administers WAP, which reduces energy costs for low-income households by increasing the energy efficiency of their homes. Nearly all awarded projects include several non-profit regional, county-level, and community action agency subgrantees.
A press release announcing the awards can be found here, along with detailed descriptions of each awarded project.
