Central Vt. Heating Services Inc.

10/21/2024

Dark Money Pushes“Clean Heat” A national SuperPAC just dropped off a $180,000 check in Montpelier to get candidates to support a Clean Heat Standard. Check out the story here.

Clean Heat Contractors Ever since the Clean Heat Standard (CHS) was first contemplated, heating contractors and equipment supply houses have been using HCCV’s Clean Heat Credit Claim Form. Thousands of these forms are in the offices and garages of Vermont heating fuel and service contractors that have installed and delivered Clean Heat Measures. It is unclear whether these forms will have any value in the future. This is because a tremendous amount of work still needs to be done to create a complex and costly “Credit Exchange” before the CHS is implemented. And that decision could be made in just 90 days by the Vermont legislature.

Dig Deeper
Watch "Understanding the Clean Heat Standard” at cleanheatvt.com.
Read Meadow Hill’s comments on the need to establish a proper exchange for verifying, selling, and exchanging these credits.
Read comments from Efficiency Vermont that reinforce the need for a highly regulated market and, if one cannot be created, a return to a simple fee to pay for thermal energy efficiency programs.
Registry Report Contractors who take on jobs that cost $10,000 or more have had to register with the Office of Professional Regulation since April 2023. However, most of the complaints coming into the Office of Professional Regulation have been on smaller dollar jobs, according to a recent report issued by the Office of Professional Regulation (click here to read). This has some policymakers taking a second look at the $10,000 threshold. Thanks to advocacy by HCCV’s government affairs team, licensed and certified plumbing, heating, and electrical contractors are exempt from any new fees or requirements to register if they are “acting within the scope of your license or certification.”

"The Clean Heat Standard, as currently conceived, requires substantial additional costs and regulatory complexity above the funding needed to accomplish Vermont’s greenhouse gas emission reduction goals.”

04/22/2024

250 Changes The effort to update Vermont's half-century-old land use law, Act 250, is nearing the finish line. However, it's not nearly what pro-growth lawmakers say is necessary. Critics argue that it does more to conserve land than address Vermont’s housing crisis. The legislation proposes classifying Vermont into "tiers” when defining where and how development is regulated. There are temporary exemptions (until 2027) from Act 250 for housing projects with up to 75 units near designated growth areas, excluding floodplains and river corridors. It allows developments of up to 50 units near village centers or transit routes and maintains exemptions for mixed-income housing projects in some towns. The legislation also proposes replacing the volunteer Natural Resources Board with a professional Land Use Review Board for appeals, shifting away from court-based appeals.

Property Tax Hike Looming Early predictions of double-digit property tax increases are coming true. While some lawmakers brushed off this possibility before the session began, we are now at the end of lawmaking season and a hike looks inevitable. Vermont homeowners will likely face a 15% increase, while commercial properties and second homes will pay about 18% more. To lessen the burden on property taxpayers, House lawmakers have proposed a 6% tax on cloud-based software and a 1.5% surcharge on short-term rentals which will generate $27 million. It only makes a small dent, lowering the tax by a single percentage point. Governor Phil Scott issued a statement that not enough has been done to address the increase in spending.

Transportation Legislation on the Move A comprehensive bill that spends more than $900 million on transportation projects is in the final stages of approval. About $125 million will try to get Vermonters to buy less gasoline. This includes $60 million for public transit, $48 million for rail, and $12 million for EV incentives and EV supply equipment. The proposal also adds an annual fee of $89 for an all-electric vehicle and a $44.50 fee for a plug-in hybrid. The money would go to a fund to further build out Vermont’s electric vehicle charging infrastructure. All is subject to change when the House and Senate work out a compromise to resolve the differences between the two different transportation spending bills. Already, House leadership is sending the message that EV’s should not pay any extra fees to pay for either fix the roads or fund Vermont’s EV charging infrastructure.

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Fixing Fixed Price Programs
Oilheat and propane customers are asking two simple questions:
1) How much will the Vermont Clean Heat Fee cost per gallon?
2) When is the earliest it could go into effect?
The first question is unknown and won’t be until the Public Utility Commission finishes designing the Clean Heat Standard in December. So far the best guess is 70 cents per gallon. While the Legislature won’t decide whether to pass the fee until next year, there is urgency now because more than one hundred local heating fuel dealers are preparing to offer summer pre-buys and fixed-price contracts to their customers. These popular price protection plans provide stability and, in most years, lower costs than if the fuel was purchased during the colder, winter months. But it’s nearly impossible for dealers to lock in rates for their customers and comply with Vermont’s guaranteed price law (9 V.S.A. § 2461e) if they are uncertain of their fixed costs. If a clean heat credit fee is applied retroactively on fuel sold after January 1, 2025, fuel sellers will be required to honor that fixed price. And if the fee is greater than their gross margin, it is quite possible that some of these local businesses will not be financially viable. The Public Utility Commission’s Technical Advisory Group voted unanimously on April 18 for the PUC to clarify when the first obligation period begins and ask that it not start until January 1, 2026, at the earliest. This was in response to the concern that any compliance fees would be applied retroactively on heating oil and propane gallons sold before the Clean Heat Credit fee was established by the PUC.