City of Fort Lauderdale to Receive $2 Million Federal Grant to Fund Energy Efficiency Projects

Chaz Adams, Sr. Public Information Specialist
(954) 828-4748 or chazadams@fortlauderdale.gov

Fort Lauderdale - The City of Fort Lauderdale will receive a $2 million federal grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to be used for energy efficiency and conservation projects.

“We’d like to thank Congressman Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Congressman Ron Klein and Congressman Alcee Hastings for all of their efforts in securing this grant for the City,” said Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jack Seiler. “These three leaders recognize that energy efficiency is critical to the long-term sustainability of our local communities and our nation.”

The grant is part of the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant program, an initiative funded by President Barack Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The program will provide $3.2 billion to U.S. cities, counties, states, territories and Native American tribes for projects that reduce total energy use and fossil fuel emissions, and improve energy efficiency nationwide.

“This grant will help the City of Fort Lauderdale continue to develop cost effective strategies to improve energy efficiency and encourage the development and use of green technologies,” said Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jack Seiler. “Supporting energy-efficiency measures and conservation initiatives will stimulate job creation, reduce overall energy consumption, and generate significant long-term energy cost savings for our residents and businesses.”

The block grant funding will support initiatives including energy audits and energy efficiency retrofits in residential and commercial buildings, the development and implementation of advanced building codes and inspections, and the creation of financial incentive programs for energy efficiency improvements.  Other activities eligible for use of grant funds include transportation programs that conserve energy, projects to reduce and capture methane and other greenhouse gas emissions from landfills, renewable energy installations on government buildings, energy efficient traffic signals and street lights, deployment of Combined Heat and Power and district heating and cooling systems, and others.

To ensure accountability, the Department of Energy will provide guidance to and require grant recipients to report on the number of jobs created or retained, energy saved, renewable energy capacity installed, greenhouse gas emissions reduced, and funds leveraged.  Funding is based on a formula that accounts for population and energy use. 

For details on funding nationwide, please visit www.energy.gov/recovery. For details on funding in Florida, please visit www.energy.gov/media/FLORIDA.pdf.