Legislature(2021 - 2022)DAVIS 106
04/04/2022 08:00 AM House EDUCATION
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| Presentation: School District Energy Costs in Alaska | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE
HOUSE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE
April 4, 2022
8:08 a.m.
MEMBERS PRESENT
Representative Harriet Drummond, Co-Chair
Representative Andi Story, Co-Chair
Representative Tiffany Zulkosky (via teleconference)
Representative Mike Cronk
Representative Ronald Gillham
MEMBERS ABSENT
Representative Grier Hopkins
Representative Mike Prax
COMMITTEE CALENDAR
PRESENTATION: SCHOOL DISTRICT ENERGY COSTS IN ALASKA
- HEARD
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION
No previous action to record
WITNESS REGISTER
DIANE HIRSHBERG, PhD, Director
Institute of Social and Economic Research
University of Alaska Anchorage
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Co-presented a PowerPoint, titled "School
District Energy Costs in Alaska."
CHRIS MCCONNELL, Director
Alaska Network for Energy Education and Employment;
Renewable Alaska Energy Project
Anchorage, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Gave comments and answered questions about
energy usage and efficiency in Alaska's school districts.
TIM MEARIG, Facilities Manager
School Finance and Facilities Section
Department of Education and Early Development
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Gave comments and answered questions about
energy usage and efficiency in Alaska's school districts.
NATHAN GREEN, Research Professional
Alaska Center for Energy and Power
University of Alaska Fairbanks
Juneau, Alaska
POSITION STATEMENT: Co-presented a PowerPoint, titled "School
District Energy Costs in Alaska."
ACTION NARRATIVE
8:08:54 AM
CO-CHAIR HARRIET DRUMMOND called the House Education Standing
Committee meeting to order at 8:08 a.m. Representatives
Gillham, Cronk, Story, and Drummond were present at the call to
order. Representatives Zulkosky arrived (via teleconference) as
the meeting was in progress.
^PRESENTATION: School District Energy Costs in Alaska
PRESENTATION: School District Energy Costs in Alaska
8:09:42 AM
CO-CHAIR DRUMMOND announced that the only order of business
would be a presentation on school district energy costs in
Alaska.
8:10:45 AM
DIANE HIRSHBERG, PhD, Director, Institute of Social and Economic
Research (ISER), University of Alaska Anchorage, presented a
PowerPoint, titled "School District Energy Costs in Alaska"
[hard copy included in the committee packet]. She said that
ISER publications and presentations are solely the work of
individual authors and should not be attributed to ISER, the
University of Alaska Anchorage, or the research sponsors. She
gave an overview, stating that energy costs in Alaska school
districts are high because of remoteness, limited options for
heat and electricity, and the climate. She suggested that
investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency would
address costs; however, the data is insufficient to estimate the
savings. She stated that per capita energy consumption in
Alaska is the fourth highest in the nation. She attributed this
to the small populations, harsh winters, and energy intensive
industries. She added that the average price of electricity in
the state is the second highest in the nation and twice the
national average, with the highest costs in the stated being in
remote areas. She stated that school district costs for heating
oil are determined through annual contracts which are
renegotiated each year. She explained that, if oil prices fall
mid-year, no savings are possible, and if a district
underestimates fuel needs, on-the-spot purchases could incur
significant costs.
8:15:55 AM
DR. HIRSHBERG noted that according to the 2021 energy audits of
156 public schools, the schools could save an average of $33,300
per year if energy efficient retrofits were implemented. She
said this would have an upfront cost of $125,000. She estimated
there would be a return on the investment in about four years;
however, no schools have implemented upgrades. She reported
that 50 percent of electricity generated in Alaska comes from
natural gas, which is limited to communities on the Railbelt and
nearby, like in Utqiagvik. She added that 27 percent of
Alaska's energy comes from hydroelectric power, which could be
impacted by drought. She stated that off-road communities use
heating fuel, diesel, or biomass plants for heat. She indicated
that there is not a comprehensive list of energy sources for
schools.
8:18:56 AM
DR. HIRSHBERG said 74 percent of energy in 2014 had been used to
heat buildings. The remaining usage included heating water,
ventilation, refrigeration, and cooking. Many factors impact
energy usage, including size, age, and construction of
buildings. She said there is significant variation between
district budgets and the percentage spend on energy. For
example, the Yukon Flats District used 10 percent of its budget
on energy due to extremely harsh winter conditions, while 6
districts spent 8 percent, 4 districts spent around 7 percent
and 11 districts spent between 5 percent and 6.8 percent of its
budget on energy. She moved to slide 10, which showed a
comparison of energy costs in areas divided into climate zones
and on-road versus off-road areas. She explained that energy
costs vary because of the age and quality of the buildings in
different districts, and this impacts energy needs differently.
8:25:29 AM
DR. HIRSHBERG stated that ISER currently does not know the areas
of energy inefficiencies; however, to better understand energy
usage, efforts are underway to install energy monitoring systems
across school districts. She stated that the Department of
Education and Early Development (DEED) is collecting data from
the districts which are applying for retrofit funds; however, to
understand the full picture of energy costs and usage, more data
is needed. She observed that Alaska's climate and remoteness
cannot be changed, so to address the high cost of energy, the
state would need to consider factors within its control,
including energy efficiency and renewable energy. She stated
that to estimate savings, there needs to be more systematic data
collection. She stated that school business officers have
helped to provide information about primary heating sources;
however, energy audits are beyond the scope of this staff. She
suggested that a coordinated effort by energy-audit experts
would create a more complete picture. She also discussed the
possibilities of removing energy costs from the funding formula,
because the volatility of energy costs harms districts, even
when more funding is granted.
8:36:21 AM
CHRIS MCCONNELL, Director, Alaska Network for Energy Education
and Employment, Renewable Alaska Energy Project, stated that
energy savings contracts are available to school districts.
This involves an energy audit from a contractor, with retrofits
implemented into the school district as part of the paid
service. He mentioned that many school districts are capable of
auditing and retrofitting themselves through incentives within
the maintenance departments. Doing this would ensure the
savings be reinvested in new efficiencies for the district,
instead of employing an outside organization.
8:41:22 AM
TIM MEARIG, Facilities Manager, School Finance and Facilities
Section, Department of Education and Early Development, affirmed
that districts are aware of energy performance contracting, and
some districts have already engaged in this. He stated that
these contracts help reduce energy consumption and result in
energy savings; although, a significant portion of the savings
are passed on to the energy company which makes the initial
investments. He continued that there is an upfront cost, but
once energy contractors have made money, savings would be passed
to the districts. Dependent on the specifics in the contract,
he said, using a contractor would lengthen the amount of time
for a district to accrue savings.
8:48:23 AM
MR. MEARIG expressed the opinion that, in general, districts are
doing a great job paying attention to energy costs. He said
that in 1999 and 2000, at the direction of the legislature, DEED
implemented facility requirements to ensure school buildings
were being properly cared for. If met, these requirements would
help qualify the districts for state aid for major maintenance
and school construction projects. To be eligible for state aid
expenditures, he stated that districts are required to track
consumption of energy for every building on a month-to-month
basis. He stated that low level auditing of energy usage has
highlighted potential disparities between school districts. He
added that DEED has implemented a stringent energy efficiency
standard for new projects with state aid. Regulations have also
been implemented requiring a demonstration of retro
commissioning of existing buildings, with energy-use intensities
tracked in these buildings. In relation to energy performance
criteria, energy-tracking analysis will help DEED to determine
when to increase energy efficiency by implementing tune-ups or
installing new energy-saving technologies.
9:04:15 AM
DR. HIRSHBERG expressed the concern that modifications to the
Power Cost Equalization Program will create higher energy costs
for Alaskans "on the edge." She said ISER is working with the
Energy Transitions Initiative Partnership, but there is a burden
on villages to apply for funding, which is difficult because
staff are already overwhelmed.
9:12:43 AM
NATHAN GREEN, Alaska Center for Energy and Power, University of
Alaska Fairbanks, mentioned his involvement in the presentation
had been on the "technical side" and less to do with the context
of the data.
9:14:50 AM
MR. MERIG noted the challenges because of the lack of data on
districts' work to increase energy efficiency. He stated that
data exists in relation to some energy improvements within state
funded projects; however, few of these projects are solely
related to energy efficiency. He pointed out that there are
success stories throughout the state concerning energy
efficiency initiatives, but these are in relation to school
boards and are not necessarily reported to DEED. He stated that
school boards are aware of local energy costs and are taking
steps to reduce those costs through energy reduction projects;
unfortunately, it would take a lot of time and effort to amass
all the energy efficiency projects across the state.
9:19:41 AM
DR. HIRSHBERG mentioned that an updated geographic cost
differential study would need to be done to give more accurate
information about the cost of living in the state. She
expressed the opinion that energy issues will always be tricky
because costs are so volatile, and calculations to determine the
geographic cost differential could be impacted very quickly.
She gave the example of Southeast Alaska during a drought. She
explained that normally Juneau uses hydropower, but if a drought
hits, Juneau must swap to diesel power. Energy costs may change
after an updated geographic cost differential, as it is
currently a less reliable source of data. She reiterated the
possibility that the cost of energy could be removed from school
budgets and addressed separately. She maintained that everyone
benefits when school districts and communities have more
efficient buildings and more access to renewables.
9:23:38 AM
MR. MCCONNELL responded to Representative Cronk's request for
district reporting of energy improvement projects. He
emphasized that facilities and maintenance employees have many
responsibilities, including keeping track of energy usage. He
stated that, in his experience, facilities maintenance workers
occupy most of the workday "putting out fires."
9:27:02 AM
CO-CHAIR STORY mentioned that the Alaska Association of School
Business Officials oversees budgets in individual districts and
could be a better pathway to find the information needed to
obtain data about energy efficiency in each district. She
suggested that the Alaska Association of School Boards annual
meeting could be a good time and place to get in touch with this
organization.
9:30:51 AM
MR. MEARIG mentioned that there are 97 projects on the current
fiscal year 2023 list. Each project is validated by DEED. He
stated that the cost of state aid funded projects is $197
million, with a grand total of $260 million. He explained that
over half of the projects listed include elements of energy
efficiency and repairs to aging energy systems. New roofing
projects include insulation which will have a significant impact
on energy efficiency for those buildings.
9:35:44 AM
MR. GREEN thanked the committee.
9:36:30 AM
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business before the committee, the House
Education Standing Committee meeting was adjourned at 9:36 a.m.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| School district energy costs _ ISER_ Apr 2022.pdf |
HEDC 4/4/2022 8:00:00 AM |
ISR presentation |
| Alaska_School_District_Expenditures_on_Energy_4-1-21.pdf |
HEDC 4/4/2022 8:00:00 AM |
ISER presentation |