December 10 - Low-income Kansans will be rewarded for getting rid of their appliances that waste energy and cost them more to run.
The Kansas Housing Resources Corporation’s (KHRC) new appliance rebate program rewards low-income households for replacing old, electricity-guzzling household appliances with new energy efficient models. The State Energy Efficient Appliance Replacement Program, or SEEARP, provides rebates to consumers who purchase ENERGY STAR ® refrigerators, clothes washers, freezers, dishwashers and window air conditioners. Funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, SEEARP will provide $2.6 million for the replacement of an estimated 4,800 appliances.
The goal of the program is to serve low-income households particularly vulnerable to high energy costs, such as the elderly, persons with disabilities, families with children, and households with a high-energy burden.
Rebates for the high-efficiency appliances will range from $200 to $800. New appliances will qualify only if they have earned the ENERGY STAR ® label. Old appliances to be recycled must be at least ten-years-old. For each appliance replaced, an appliance must be surrendered for recycle. Point-of-sale rebates will be made directly to participating retailers.
SEEARP is designed after another successful energy-efficiency initiative launched by KHRC earlier this year called the Residential Appliance Replacement (RAR) Program. This initiative converted a $4 million dollar investment into nearly $19 million in lifetime energy savings for low-income families.
Although RAR has ended, KHRC still has nearly 1500 applications for services. The data base of eligible customers generated through the RAR program will be used to initiate SEEARP. Program eligibility will be determined by a first-come, first-served basis.
SEEARP will be administered within the existing structures of the Weatherization Assistance Program and the LIHEAP.
Source: KHRC
