DOE loosens rules for contractor training grants

The federal government has made it easier for states to launch programs that train contractors on certain home energy-efficiency upgrades. 

Catch up quick: When Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022, it established the Home Energy Rebates programs to encourage homeowners to make energy-saving home improvements, including installing high-efficiency HVAC equipment. 

• As part of the effort, it created the Training for Residential Energy Contractors (TREC) program, earmarking $200 million in grants for state energy offices to fund contractor training on the associated work.
• To receive the funds, states were initially required to offer training programs recognized by the Department of Energy (DOE) as “Energy Skilled” and meet certain Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) goals. They were also required to establish “Workforce Advisory Groups” to help guide program design. 

What’s happening: The DOE has loosened some of those rules. In updated guidance issued in August, the agency removed the DEI and Energy Skilled requirements — and made Workforce Advisory Groups optional.  

• The updates will give participating states more flexibility and provide a path forward for new state programs to launch, according to the nonprofit Building Performance Association (BPA).     

What they’re saying: BPA technical director Damian Hodkinson told Homepros that the association can liaise between contractors and state energy offices. 

• “Contractors have different needs in different states, but one of the overarching things is a mixture of on-the-job training and classroom training, and so we do hope that the states will think about that and address that in their program designs,” he said.  

State of play: TREC programs are so far active in 13 states, according to a tracker by the National Association of State Energy Officials (NASEO).