Waiting game
Energy efficiency program inaccessible to low income Islanders: PC MLA
A lengthy waiting time to receive energy efficiency equipment rebates has made the provincial program inaccessible to many Islanders, says a PC MLA.
Rustico-Emerald MLA Brad Trivers said during Wednesday’s question period that Islanders are being told it’s a three-month wait to receive rebates for installing more energy efficient home heating equipment.
Trivers said the wait time has made the program inaccessible to many Islanders, especially low-income Islanders and seniors on a fixed-income who can’t afford the upfront cost.
“The longer it takes to get the rebate, the more costly it is to the applicant,” said Trivers. “We’re hearing low income Islanders, in fact, are not using the program because they can’t afford to.”
While Energy Minister Paula Biggar acknowledged the province has had to hire extra staff in order to process rebate applications, which have increased by 300 per cent since April, she shook her head and said no, when Trivers brought up the waiting period.
“We’re making sure those are going out and we have access to direct deposit for clients who have applied,” said Biggar, who did not provide the average amount of time it would take to receive a rebate but noted that more than 2,500 Islanders have used the program.
The program provides rebates for the installation of Energy Star certified heating equipment such as heat pumps, water saving devices, biomass heating devices and other energy-saving products.
Low-income families, which have an annual household income of $35,000 or less, get a larger rebate. For example, the regular rebate for a geothermal heat pump installation is $4,000 while the low-income rebate is up to $7,500.
“This is great, but how can low income households possibly afford to outlay that kind of cash and then wait for three months to get their rebate back?” said Trivers. “How do they come up with the upfront money to make the upgrade? If they can get a loan or credit card, is it worth the amount of interest they’ll have to pay?”
Trivers said another issue with the program was that energy upgrade projects already started or recently completed were ineligible for a rebate, a statement which Biggar said was incorrect.
“We will look at an application that meets the requirements going back 12 months. And we have done that,” said Biggar.