R-PACE Task Force Concludes -- Report Due Soon

Last session, the Minnesota Legislature temporarily discontinued Minnesota’s Residential Property Assessed Clean Energy (R-PACE) program in order to proactively address consumer protection concerns that arose out of incidents that happened in other states, including predatory lending practices that led to foreclosures on vulnerable homeowners.

As part of this legislative solution, policymakers established the R-PACE Consumer Protection Task Force which is charged with developing legislative recommendations to address consumer protection problems and reinstate the R-PACE program in Minnesota.

CEEM is a sitting member of this Task Force and has been meeting with the Department of Commerce and other stakeholders since July to restore the R-PACE program in Minnesota, a program aimed at helping customers finance energy efficiency and clean energy upgrades on their properties.

Throughout the six months of Task force meetings, CEEM has advocated for increased access to efficient and clean energy by reimplementing R-PACE in Minnesota with added consumer protections. Not only does R-PACE, as an alternative financing mechanism, improve consumer choice, it is also good for our state’s economy as residential energy improvement projects use Minnesota-made products, services, and workers.  

The Task Force is wrapping up in the coming weeks, developing a final report to the legislature outlining the Taskforce’s findings. CEEM submitted public comments highlighting four elements essential for a competitive R-PACE program to be successful in Minnesota.

Click here for more information on PACE and the economic impacts of the program.