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Do you meet the criteria for our NEEP program?

Non-profit organizations serving limited income individuals and families – which typically operate on shoe-string budgets – can get help reducing energy costs for their facilities under Energy Outreach Colorado’s new Nonprofit Energy Efficiency Program (NEEP).

Through NEEP, qualifying and committed non-profit facilities receive energy audits, efficiency improvements (as appropriate based upon available funding) and develop an energy education plan to be implemented at their facility. The efficiency improvements and changes in behavior around energy consumption will help offset increasing energy bills so that more of their operating budgets can go toward helping clients – many of whom also receive assistance from Energy Outreach Colorado.

If your organization is considered a housing provider and/or your clients are responsible for paying rent, then you may be a better fit for our Energy Solutions Grants (ESG) program. Please click here for more information about the ESG program.

If you are a non-profit organization located in the City and County of Denver or a non-profit whose utility provider is Xcel Energy for either gas or electric service and you are

• Committed to reducing energy consumption at their facility
• Willing to implement new behaviors and policies regarding energy consumption through the adoption of an energy education plan
• Willing to participate in utility bill analysis program that requires providing EOC with two years of previous utility data and up to one year of post utility data

you may qualify to participate in NEEP. The current criteria for selection are listed below.

Currently, we are accepting applications for non-profits located in the City and County of Denver or non-profits whose utility provider is Xcel Energy for either gas or electric service.

• Must be a 501c3 non-profit organization (churches with outreach programs will be considered on case by case basis).
• Must own building (long term leases will be considered on case by case basis, no government owned facilities).
• Mission must be related to serving low-income populations.
• Organization must be responsible for paying utility bills for facility and have two previous years of utility data available.
• Priority will be given to facilities with the high energy demands that shelter people, such as 24-hour and day shelters, safe houses and residential treatment centers that typically serve men, women and children on the brink of homelessness, individuals that are coming out of domestic violence situations, and individuals with mental illness or special needs.

1. APPLICATION:
   All complete applications received by the quarterly deadlines of Feb 1, May 1, Aug 1 and Nov 1 will be reviewed by a committee.
   
   You will be notified of a decision within six weeks of these dates.


2. ENERGY AUDIT
   Once your application has been approved, an energy audit will be scheduled with your organization by a third party. The results of this energy audit will be made available to you. Being approved for an audit does not guarantee that efficiency improvements will be made, but every effort will be made to find appropriate funding to reduce your organization's energy consumption.
   
   The process of scheduling an auditor and drafting an audit report may take up to 2-3 months.


3. EFFICIENCY IMPROVEMENTS
   Once the audit report is available, the NEEP Team, consisting of the EOC program manager, the auditor, the contractor and the education coordinator, will schedule a meeting with the appropriate staff at your facility to discuss the findings. EOC will use the findings of the energy audit to determine which energy improvement recommendations would be most cost effective and appropriate for your facility. A third party contractor will be identified to provide cost estimates and to implement the changes. EOC will work to identify appropriate funding sources to implement the recommended changes. Once funding has been determined, approved improvements will begin at your facility.
   
   The process of estimating costs for proposed changes and identifying appropriate funding sources may take an additional (1-2) months.


4. ENERGY EDUCATION PLAN
   In order to maximize the energy savings from the energy efficiency improvements, EOC will work with your organization to identify and implement new behaviors and policies that will help significantly reduce energy consumption at your facility. The development of an education plan will begin once the audit is complete. EOC will provide an education coordinator to meet with the appropriate staff at your facility to develop this plan.


5. UTILITY ANALYSIS
   Once the work is completed and the education plan is in place, EOC will collect your utility bills and do an analysis to determine how much energy and how much money your facility is saving as a result of your participation in this program. Your facility will be provided with a workshop on how to read your utility bill and quarterly graphs depicting your energy usage and savings.
   
   The utility analysis and support for your education plan will continue for up to two years after work has been completed.

Do you meet the criteria for our NEEP program?

Would you like to find out if you are a good fit for our NEEP program?

Don't match the current funding criteria, but would like to know when additional funding opportunities become available?

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