Help Us Support Energy Efficiency by Contacting Your Representative

The NC General Assembly is back in Raleigh this week, and we’re in danger of seeing yet another bad bill approved over Gov. Roy Cooper’s veto. This morning (Sept. 9) the senate voted to override the veto, but there’s still an opportunity to support energy efficiency in North Carolina. With the Senate override, the bill now moves to the NC House of Representatives; contact your representative today!

The Bad Bill

Senate Bill (SB) 166 is a long 71-page bill full of unrelated items, some benign and others destructive. In particular, the bill contains destructive sections which undermine the transition to clean energy vehicles and block the badly needed updating of energy efficiency standards for new housing construction. 

Governor Cooper vetoed SB 166 on July 5. In his veto statement he said, “By limiting options for energy efficiency and electric vehicles, this legislation prevents North Carolina’s building code from adopting innovations in construction and mobility that save consumers money. This bill also removes subject matter experts from the building code council, including architects, active fire service, a coastal expert, local government officials, and public at large membership, and limits the knowledge and practical experience of the body tasked with ensuring all buildings are safely designed. Therefore, I veto the bill.” 

Take Action

NCLCV director of governmental relations Dan Crawford warns that votes to override Cooper’s veto of SB 166 could be held this week. “This terrible bill–pushed by developers–aims to weaken building codes and thus energy efficiency,” says Crawford. “These requirements for builders save you and me money and reduce our energy use.” NCLCV encourages supporters of clean energy and energy efficiency to contact your representative now and ask that they vote against overriding Cooper’s veto of SB 166.