Winter heating bills drive Montana residents to energy efficiency
Nov 6, 2005 - Independent Record, Helena, Mont.
Author(s): John Harrington
Nov. 6--In the last two-plus decades, Mike Gardner, owner of Target
Energy Systems, has rarely seen such demand for his firm's home
improvement services: insulation, windows, doors, weather stripping and
other improvements designed to make homes more energy efficient.
"I've been doing this for 22 years, and this is like it was back in
the early '80s," he said. "It's directly related to both the amount of
hype and the reality of higher energy prices."
Gardner says that while everyone's aware their energy bills are
rising, not everyone knows there can be financial benefits to making
home improvements beyond less electricity and gas use. Both the power
company and the government want people to use less energy, and have put
various incentives in place to encourage that behavior.
"I'm running into all kinds -- situations where people are not aware
of the incentives, and situations where they know more about them than I
do," Gardner said. "Some people have investigated them and are up to
speed, and others are just motivated by other things, like warmth and
comfort."
Starting last month, NorthWestern Energy began offering rebates to
people for making what the utility views as significant improvements to
make gains in energy efficiency.
"We have identified the investments that people are going to make
that will result in the most payback and see the most savings," said Deb
Young of the company's regulatory support services staff.
NorthWestern offers rebates for two upgrades to owners of existing
gas-heated homes:
--Insulation. Depending on the size of the home and the amount of
insulation in place already, this rebate can amount to several hundred
dollars.
For instance, a 1,400 square-foot attic with no insulation that a
homeowner insulates to a value of R-38 qualifies for a $588 rebate,
Young said. A 1,000 square-foot basement with no insulation that's
subsequently brought up to R-19 earns a $290 rebate.
Depending on what's already in place, additional insulation for crawl
spaces, rim joists or above-grade exterior surfaces may qualify as well.
--Programmable thermostat. Anyone installing an Energy Star- rated
programmable thermostat becomes eligible for a $40 rebate from
NorthWestern. The thermostat can be programmed to suit a family's
schedule, automatically lowering the temperature when nobody's home
during the day before snapping on in the evening.
Information and rebate forms for this program, which runs through
April 30, are available at
www.northwesternenergy.com/ naturalgas or by calling (800) 823-5995.
The utility isn't the only place for cash incentives to decrease your
home's energy use. The state of Montana also makes it worthwhile beyond
the power bill savings to invest in efficiency. Gerard Poore, a CPA with
AZ & Co. in Helena, said there's a $500 state tax credit -- a
subtraction from your total tax bill -- available for people making
energy efficient home improvements.
The credit is good for either 25 percent or $500 worth of an
improvement, whichever is less. So a $1,000 upgrade to more efficient
windows, for example, would earn a $250 tax credit. Poore said asking
about any home improvements done in the last year is a standard part of
preparing people's returns, and that lots of taxpayers don't realize
their projects may qualify for tax credits. He estimated that only 5
percent of the returns he prepared last year took advantage of the
credit.
"What I've seen in the past is people are doing ordinary upgrading of
their homes, and they're not aware that these credits are available," he
said.
Starting Jan. 1, the federal government is getting into the act.
Although the tax credit isn't as generous as what Montana offers, the
two taken together will mean additional savings.
The Energy Tax Incentive Act of 2005 offers credits on federal taxes
due for various energy use improvements to a homes doors or windows, as
well as insulation, roofing, furnaces, heat pumps and boilers. The
maximum credit in any two-year period is $500.
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