October 30th is traditionally celebrated as Weatherization Day, but our members and local weatherization providers have been sponsoring events throughout October to shine a light on the positive impact the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) has on low-income households and our local communities. Many events are being held across the country to celebrate a program that reduces energy burden for low income households, while also improving the health and safety of the homes. WAP also supports 8,500 jobs nationwide, many of these at small businesses in our local communities.
NASCSP is proud to support the work of our members and the entire weatherization network, below are a few highlights of the networks efforts to shine a light on the impact of WAP during 2019:
- NASCSP works with the WAP network to educate members of Congress about weatherization and the impact of WAP in our States and local communities. In July we partnered with Energy OutWest to host a Weatherization Expo on Capitol Hill. Representatives Kaptur (OH) and Tonko (NY) attended the event and have been champions for the Program- Kaptur on funding and Tonko on reauthorization. In October we participated in a Weatherization Demonstration Project hosted by South Central Community Action Partnership in Idaho. Representative Simpson attended the event, field-tested a few WAP tools and technologies, and spoke to the importance of continuing to fund the WAP.
- While we are the association for states, we work closely with the National Community Action Partnership. We collaborate on training and technical assistance, initiatives to promote program effectiveness and an annual funding report. Our joint research showed that in 2017 a total of approximately $1 billion dollars was available to States and Local Agencies for weatherization. Today we are traveling together to a Weatherization Day event in Virginia – watch our Facebook and Twitter accounts for photos and updates from this event!
- NASCSP hosts two training conferences each year, providing opportunities for peer-to-peer exchanges and training opportunities for new and experienced program managers. In September our Annual Conference was held in Little Rock, AR and we hosted a special training event for the WAP Island Grantees. Managers and staff from the Territories and Hawaii were together in person for the first time to learn from each other and celebrate 10 years of providing WAP services.
NASCSP looks forward to supporting Grantees and the WAP network in their efforts to improve and innovate in 2020! Please share your Weatherization Day activities and reach out to us with questions and suggestions.
The NASCSP WAP Team – Amy, Eric, and Dakota
