Designing and Implementing Programs

• Program Design
• Considerations for Program Design and Implementation
• EPA Climate and Clean Energy Programs and Resources
• Tools and Resources

Local governments across the country are achieving significant energy, environmental, public health, and financial benefits through a variety of climate change mitigation and clean energy programs. Many of these programs are the result of policies intended to expand the use of clean energy and/or meet goals or targets from climate change action plans.

Program Design

Regardless of the program(s) chosen for implementation, the following steps help ensure effective program design:

• Define program goals and scale
• Set a time frame for roll out, delivery, and reporting results
• Define a program baseline and data collection plan
• Establish a budget in context of broader goals
• Identify evaluation and reporting approaches

Considerations for Program Design and Implementation

Successful program design and implementation is an outcome of identifying key participants and appropriate mechanisms of implementation.

Key Participants- Local governments can work with a range of participants to design and implement climate change mitigation and clean energy programs. The types of participants may vary across programs but can include:

• Mayor or County Executive
• City or County Councils
• Local Government Agencies
• Private Businesses
• Non-profit Organizations and Community Groups

Mechanisms for Implementation - Local governments employ a variety of mechanisms to initiate programs ranging from regulatory policies to voluntary programs. Local governments can incorporate climate and clean energy into government operations by leading by example.

Policy Examples	Voluntary Examples
Executive Initiatives	Incentive Programs
City or County Resolutions	Demonstration Projects
Zoning Ordinances	Awards

When designing programs, local governments can review successful examples and case studies implemented by other local governments for ideas, lessons learned, and potential achievable results.

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EPA Climate and Clean Energy Programs and Resources

To help local governments and others in the community develop their own programs with limited resources, EPA facilitates numerous climate and clean energy programs that offer information, outreach materials, qualification and quantification tools, and technical assistance.

A concise overview of EPA programs and resources that local governments can use to expand or develop climate and clean energy initiatives is provided in the State and Local Guide to U.S. EPA Climate and Energy Program Resources (PDF) (29 pp, 350K, About PDF). Each program description in the guide includes:

• Basic information and contact details
• Potential target audiences
• Highlights of ready-to-go tools and resources
• Suggestions of possible actions that leverage EPA's offerings

The programs reviewed in the guide include:

EPA Program	Buildings (Residential and Non-Residential)	Industry	Electric Power and Renewable Energy	Transportation	Energy Education	Policy, Planning, and Energy Security
AgSTAR		√	√			√
Climate Leaders	√	√	√		√
Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Partnership	√	√	√			√
ENERGY STAR for Buildings and Plants	√				√	√
ENERGY STAR for Government	√		√		√	√
ENERGY STAR for Industry	√	√			√
ENERGY STAR Products	√	√			√	√
ENERGY STAR Residential - Existing Homes	√				√	√
ENERGY STAR Residential - New Homes	√				√	√
Green Power Partnership	√	√	√		√
Heat Island Reduction Program	√	√				√
Landfill Methane Outreach Program		√	√			√
Local Climate and Energy Program	√		√	√	√	√
National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency	√	√	√		√	√
State Climate and Energy Program	√		√	√	√	√

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Tools and Resources

Local Government Climate and Energy Strategy Series

The Local Government Climate and Energy Strategy Series provide a comprehensive, straightforward overview of local government greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction strategies. Staff can use these guides to plan, implement, and evaluate climate and energy projects. Each guide provides an overview of project benefits, policy mechanisms, investments, key stakeholders, and other implementation considerations. Examples and case studies are incorporated throughout the guides. Topics covered in the guides include energy efficiency, transportation, urban planning and design, solid waste and materials management, and renewable energy.

Rapid Deployment Energy Efficiency (RDEE) Toolkit

The RDEE Toolkit provides detailed program design and implementation guides for 10 broadly applicable energy efficiency programs. The toolkit focuses on programs that have extensive, proven field experience, along with documentation on program design, program cost, and results. If implemented as directed, these programs should produce clear, measurable, and predictable energy savings and jobs.

State and Local Guide to U.S. EPA Climate and Energy Program Resources

The Guide (PDF) (29 pp, 350K, About PDF) has been designed to help state and local governments see which EPA programs could be leveraged to expand or develop clean energy initiatives in their locality. It includes roughly two-page synopses of 14 EPA climate and energy partnership programs. Each program description includes:

• Basic information and contact details
• Potential target audiences
• Highlights of ready-to-go tools and resources
• Suggestions of possible actions a state or local government could take to leverage EPA's offerings

Understanding Cost-Effectiveness of Energy Efficiency Programs

The National Action Plan for Energy Efficiency report on Understanding Cost-Effectiveness of Energy Efficiency Programs: Best Practices, Technical Methods, and Emerging Issues for Policy-Makers (PDF) (96 pp, 1M, About PDF) reviews the issues and approaches involved in considering and adopting cost-effectiveness tests for energy efficiency, including discussing each perspective represented by the five standard cost-effectiveness tests and clarifying key terms.

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