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Emerson Claus appointed to Commission on Clean Heat

By December 6, 2021No Comments

Governor Charlie Baker recently appointed HBRAMA President Emerson J. Clauss III to the Commission on Clean Heat in the Commonwealth. Clauss, president of Allegiance Construction in Whitinsville, will represent the homebuilding and remodeling industry on this 22-member body.

The Baker-Polito Administration’s 2050 Decarbonization Roadmap, published in December 2020, identified the need to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from heating buildings to meet the net zero emissions target of 2050. The administration’s Clean Energy and Climate Plan for 2030 recommended a special Commission on Clean Heat to advise the Commonwealth on how best to achieve legally mandated greenhouse gas emissions by reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with heating fuels.

Gov. Baker established the Commission on Clean Heat by Executive Order No. 596. Kathleen Theoharides, Secretary of the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, will serve as chair of the commission. Its membership will include representatives from the field of affordable housing, energy efficient building design and construction, healthcare, heating system design and technology, real estate and heating fuel distribution.

The mission of the Commission on Clean Heat is to provide policy recommendations to the governor to meet the requirements of the Global Warming Solutions Act, particularly with respect to emissions from heating fuels. Policy recommendations shall include options to accelerate the deployment of energy efficiency programs and clean heating systems in new and existing buildings and transition existing distribution systems to clean energy, as well as financing mechanisms, incentives and other regulatory options, with consideration to regional differences, equity, affordability and costs.

The commission is expected to begin its work in January and must issue its policy recommendations by no later than November 30, 2022.