Leaders praise energy efficiency order expected to provide taxpayer savings

Arkansas energy leaders gathered Wednesday (Feb. 9) at the state Capitol to celebrate Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s executive order to implement energy efficiency measures and reduce the energy costs in state government, according to a news release from Arkansas Advanced Energy Association (AAEA).

The order shows that implementing simple practices might lead to significant cost savings to taxpayers by eliminating unnecessary energy consumption and reducing the costs of state government operations. The order also noted the steady decrease in the cost of advanced energy systems.

“Gov. Hutchinson has constantly pursued ways to increase efficiency by reducing unnecessary government spending,” said Secretary of Transformation and Shared Services Amy Fecher. “The ongoing efforts of Transformation create new opportunities to assess the costs of state government operations and implement innovation conservation and cost-saving measures. This executive order regarding energy efficiency is simply one more way we can engage in responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars.”

State departments, in collaboration with the Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment, are encouraged to develop a strategic energy program that can lead to an estimated 15%-20% in annual savings.

“At a time where our historical energy production methods are at capacity, this is a priority all sectors of our industry can get behind,” said Matt Bell, AAEA board member and partner of Entegrity. “The advanced energy industry stands ready to help with next steps to make it as easy as possible for state agencies to meet the goals of the executive order. This simply reinforces the Hutchinson administration’s commitment to transforming Arkansas’s state government for the better.”

Link here for the order that Hutchinson signed on Jan. 3.