Topeka — Kansas can and should do more to encourage energy conservation, three consultants on energy efficiency told a Senate committee.
The testimony Monday before the Senate Utilities Committee provided background for consideration later this week of a bill on conservation tax breaks, said chairman Stan Clark, R-Oakley.
Lawrence architect Joseph King, who specializes in designing energy-efficient buildings, said other states have done far more than Kansas to reduce demand.
For example, he said, a report by the Washington, D.C.-based American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy showed that the state of Washington had cut demand for energy by 9.2 percent in 20 years. Meanwhile, Kansas "completely skipped the demand-side management effort that occurred in most states the past two decades," King said.
"Kansas came in dead last," he said.
At the same time, he said, Kansas effectively subsidizes inefficiency by charging the sales tax on insulation but not on residential natural gas.
"Kansas energy policy has long been to produce and consume Kansas resources as rapidly as possible," King said.
The bill before the Senate Utilities Committee would encourage lower energy use in part by providing tax breaks to consumers who make homes and businesses more energy-efficient or invest in renewable resources such as solar and wind power.
Families could receive income tax credits of $250 for having their homes' energy efficiency tested, and up to $2,000 for such energy-saving moves as installing insulation and having air ducts sealed.
"It's not rocket science, it's the simple things," King said.
Gene Meyer, with Kansas State University's Energy Extension Service, said residential conservation measures can reduce energy consumption by 5 percent to 35 percent a year.
"In the end, the cheapest energy is the energy not used," Meyer said.
Douglas Walter, president of the Kansas Building Science Institute, noted that home energy ratings help identify where energy can best be conserved.
The ratings pinpoint flaws like leaky air ducts that builders and sellers of homes are not likely to admit, he said.
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