Advocates press panel for funding to remove health-and-safety barriers that block weatherization for low-income households

Advocates and nonprofit providers told the Energy & Technology Committee that Connecticut—s REPS program, which addresses health and safety issues that block weatherization, needs stable funding to reach the many homes currently deferred.

Gannon Long of Operation Fuel urged lawmakers to commit $8 million to supplement DEEP—s REPS funding, saying many households are deferred from efficiency programs because of mold, asbestos, old oil tanks, defective stoves or refrigerators and other barriers. Operation Fuel and partners have used limited discretionary funds to help households convert to heat pumps and address urgent replacements, but Long said grant support is patchy and insufficient to meet need.

Rhonda Evans of the Connecticut Association for Community Action testified that REPS must not be funded by cutting the federal Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) block grant, which provides heating assistance to tens of thousands of low-income households. Advocates and community-action providers said LIHEAP benefit levels remain below 2019 levels while demand is steady; they urged REPS funding to be supplemental and not to reduce LIHEAP benefits.

DEEP and providers described REPS as a gateway that allows homes to complete remediation and then proceed to full weatherization, which produces long-term energy and health benefits. Witnesses also said REPS work produces systemic benefits: better indoor air quality, reduced utility arrears over time, and fewer emergency energy crises. Committee members asked for data on program scale and backlog; witnesses reported hundreds of projects completed or underway and hundreds more on wait lists and said funding gaps limit throughput.

The committee will weigh how to fund REPS without impairing LIHEAP and other critical assistance, and whether a recurring appropriation or a one-time supplemental should be included in the budget.