A program that provides low-income homeowners in Davidson County with energy system upgrades is also going to offer career training in the energy sector to underemployed or unemployed individuals.
Tennessee Valley Authority and Nashville Electric Service started the Home Energy Uplift program earlier this year to help homeowners become more energy efficient.
Low-income residents often can’t afford upgrades like proper insulation and functional heating or cooling appliances. The program has already helped over seventy homeowners with these retrofits, which can cost thousands of dollars.
But, the utility groups realized funding is not the only barrier to helping homeowners make upgrades. There’s also a lack of workers that can work on these systems. Nashville Mayor David Briley is announcing today that a new grant from the Southeast Sustainable Communities Fund will be used to build this job pipeline.
Patrick Combs, director of the Nashville Career Advancement Center, says his team is partnering with NES and TVA to train low-income or unemployed people, so they can become technicians in the energy-efficiency field.
“We saw this as the perfect opportunity to really help people that are looking for a sustainable career pathway, while also being able to provide a real service in the communities where this money is being spent,” said Combs, adding that the center will work with TVA to certify around 50 participants a year.
Home Energy Uplift could also get another boost this week. Two metro council members are filing a non-binding resolution that would automatically round up customers’ utility bills to the next dollar.
Customers would donate the extra cents, unless they decide to opt out. This would go toward funding Home Energy Uplift.
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