Electrify Your Community

The document outlines a comprehensive framework for local governments to scale the deployment of air-source and ground-source heat pumps and heat pump water heaters. It details a five-step methodology: building a diverse program team and setting goals, engaging and qualifying local contractors, designing affordable incentive and financing structures, executing community outreach, and managing program launch and impact tracking. The guide emphasizes equity, specifically targeting low-to-moderate income (LMI) and frontline communities, and leverages federal incentives from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).

• Residential building electrification is critical for climate targets because over 95% of in-home greenhouse gas emissions originate from heating, cooling, and water heating.
• Successful 'Electrify' programs require a coalition of internal local government departments (such as permitting, procurement, and communications) and external partners, including community-based organizations (CBOs), utilities, and technical experts.
• Contractors often face barriers to heat pump adoption, including high up-front costs, complexity of incentives, and misconceptions about performance in cold climates; programs can mitigate this by providing high-quality leads and streamlined application processes.
• To ensure affordability for low-income residents, programs should utilize 'midstream' incentives (paid to contractors or distributors) to enable instant rebates and consider loan loss reserves (LLR) to lower lender risk for those with poor credit.
• Effective community outreach relies on 'trusted messengers,' such as local CBOs and peer 'heat pump ambassadors,' rather than relying solely on elected officials.
• The guide identifies several federal funding mechanisms for local programs, including the Residential Energy Efficiency Tax Credit (25C) and the Home Electrification Rebates Program, which can provide up to $8,000 for heat pumps to LMI households.

APA

RMI (2024). Electrify Your Community. https://rmi.org/resources/electrify-your-community/

Chicago

RMI. Electrify Your Community. 2024. https://rmi.org/resources/electrify-your-community/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Electrify Your Community |date=20 November 2024 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/electrify-your-community/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2024electrify, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Electrify Your Community}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2024}, month = nov, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/electrify-your-community/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }