House vote gives Senate an opportunity to spur clean energy investments in Appalachia

CONTACT: Molly Moore, Appalachian Voices Communications, (847) 401-3633, molly@appvoices.org Dana Kuhnline, Legislative Coordinator, (304) 825-3262, dana@appvoices.org Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Build Back Better Act, a bill that, if passed by the U.S. Senate, will deliver significant investments in Appalachian families and workers and create jobs bringing cleaner energy to our communities…

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The Energy Burden

Tennessee residents with inefficient housing and high energy bills could benefit from programs that make home weatherization improvements more accessible.

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Serving residents by saving energy

Students at Appalachian State University in Boone, N.C. spent a recent Saturday volunteering with Appalachian Voices and others to give two local homes an energy efficiency boost. The work was part of the school’s 18th annual MLK Challenge. “They caught energy leaks I knew nothing about,” said Faith Wright of Vilas, N.C., who was grateful for the volunteer energy of what she called the “student worker bees.”

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O’ TVA where art thou?

The Tennessee Valley Authority was created in the 1930s to bring cheap electricity to the most rural reaches of the Tennessee River valley. Almost a century later, many residents are struggling to pay electric bills that can be hundreds of dollars a month for their modest homes. Utility-sponsored financing to help with energy-efficiency improvements would go a long way.

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Energy bill acrobatics

For the Schmidt family of Tazewell, Tennessee, managing their budget is a balancing act, and one they have become very good at. But high electric bills–up to $300 in the winter–makes that balance tricky to maintain, sometimes leaving very little for emergency funds, much less for the home repairs they need that could actually lower their energy use.

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