New York will spend $150 million expanding the use of heat pump systems in small residential buildings as part of a push to address the state’s housing crisis.
The funding, which is available to homeowners and developers of small residential buildings, will come out of the state’s Homes and Community Renewal’s (HCR) Green Small Buildings Program to support systems that use electricity rather than fossil fuels to heat and cool homes.
“By investing in modern, energy-efficient heat pump technology for homeowners and small buildings, we are lowering utility costs, reducing harmful emissions and ensuring more New Yorkers can live in safe, comfortable and climate-friendly homes,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement.
The funding will come from small building development and grant programs run by HCR and through the state’s mortgage programs. For more information about accessing the funding, visit the state agency’s website at hcr.ny.gov.
In her State of the State address this year, Hochul introduced a “Let Them Build” agenda designed to remove development hurdles with a goal of creating or preserving 100,000 affordable homes across the state.
“Families are struggling with rising utility costs, aging housing stock and systems that no longer serve them,” said State Sen. Kevin Parker, a Brooklyn Democrat who chairs the Senate’s energy and telecommunications committee. “This funding puts relief where it belongs in people’s homes, lowering bills, improving air quality and making those homes safer and more efficient today.”
Thomas C. Zambito covers energy, transportation and economic growth for the USA TODAY Network’s New York State team. He’s won dozens of state and national writing awards from the Associated Press, Investigative Reporters and Editors, the Deadline Club and others during a decades-long career that’s included stops at the New York Daily News, The Star-Ledger of Newark and The Record of Hackensack. He can be reached at tzambito@lohud.com
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: NY utility costs up? How to get aid for an energy-efficient heat pump
Reporting by Thomas C. Zambito, New York State Team / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
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