Accessibility menu
State Representative John Persell
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
651-296-5516
For more information contact: Sandy Connolly 651-296-8877
Press/News Releases
PERSELL LEGISLATION WOULD FUND RENEWABLE ENERGY GRANTS TO CITIES
ST. Paul, MN – Legislation authored by State Rep. John Persell (DFL-Bemidji) would promote the expansion of renewable energy in Minnesota by providing grants to local governments.
If enacted, this bill would direct the Commissioner of Commerce to develop, implement and administer a program to finance the purchase and installation of renewable energy systems. This would include solar thermal water heating, solar electric or photovoltaic equipment, wind energy conversion systems and geothermal energy heating and cooling systems.
“Smaller scaled local projects can go a long way toward making our state more environmentally friendly and reducing both our energy costs and our dependence on out of State energy," said Persell. “These are the kind of forward-thinking investments I believe have real merit for our state.”
At least once a year, grants will be awarded based on the following criteria:
• the reliability and cost-effectiveness of the renewable technology to be installed;
• the extent to which the proposal effectively integrates with the conservation and
energy efficiency programs of the energy utilities serving the local government;
• the extent to which the local government has maximized other cost-effective
energy efficiency and conservation improvements;
• the total life cycle energy use and greenhouse gas emissions reductions per
dollar of installed cost;
• the geographic distribution of grant recipients throughout the state;
• the percentage of total project cost requested; and
• other criteria the commissioner may determine to be necessary and appropriate.
The bill was heard in the Energy Finance and Policy Division and will next be heard in the Capital Investment Finance Division. For more information on the local government renewable energy grant program, contact State Rep. John Persell at (651) 296- 5116 or by email at rep.john.persell@house.mn.
News Items
- Rep. Persell: We Must Come Together to Help Citizens, Businesses Affected by Disaster - (Posted: 2012-08-16 00:00:00)
- Rep. Persell: Today’s Hearing an Important First Step - (Posted: 2012-08-07 00:00:00)
- Rep. Persell: Omnibus Tax Bill Exemplifies Irresponsible Budgeting - (Posted: 2012-05-01 00:00:00)
- Archived News Items
- Subscribe to RSS News Feeds
- Read more about RSS.