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County authorizes execution of state energy grants for facility upgrades, commissioners approve
Summary
Commissioners authorized staff to execute Maryland Energy Administration grant agreements to pursue energy-efficiency and electrification projects at county facilities; staff said the county could seek roughly $1.0M+ under one area and about $1.3M under another, with phased design and no obligation to proceed if infeasible.
The Queen Anne's County Commissioners authorized the Department of Public Works to execute grant agreements with the Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) under the Local Government Energy Modernization Program and to administer the resulting projects. County staff said MEA selected Queen Anne's County to receive up to a total award in the multi‑hundreds of thousands to low‑millions range for FY 2026 and identified two areas of interest covering general energy‑efficiency/renewables and electrification projects.
Lee Edgar, the county's chief engineer, said the county could obtain "just over $1,000,000" for one area of interest (focused on renewables/efficiencies) and about "$1,300,000" under another area (electrification), and that certain awards are structured as 90% reimbursement with a 10% local match. He emphasized that the proposals are conceptual and that the grant funds would cover design and installation; if design work shows a project is not feasible or reliable, the county would forfeit that portion of the award rather than proceed on an unworkable project.
Commissioners asked about heat-pump performance and backup during extreme cold. Edgar said staff and the facilities manager have identified potential solutions (electric reheat, VAV boxes and other backup options) and that the county would not proceed with full conversions unless it is confident reliability and fiscal benefits can be achieved. A motion to execute the MEA agreements and authorize DPW to administer the projects passed by voice vote.
