Beneficial electrification means replacing direct fossil fuel use (gasoline, propane, etc.) in homes with electricity in a way that both reduces emissions and cuts costs for the homeowner. This panel brings together leaders in beneficial electrification and will highlight how electric cooperatives have pioneered this work. Panelists will describe how beneficial electrification works, how they incorporate equity into its financing, and the empowerment it brings to those facing the highest financial burdens and highest barriers to opportunity. Low and moderate-income communities, communities of color and rural Americans are leading and benefitting from this work; panelists will describe how they and their partners will make further progress. Growing interest in social justice and financial risks from the COVID-19 pandemic make the case for beneficial electrification even stronger. This work will help us build the more energy efficient, climate friendly, opportunity-generating and just economy we need.
Moderator: Kate LaTour, Director of Government Relations, NCBA CLUSA
Panelist: John Michael Cross, On-Bill Financing Project Manager, Environmental and Energy Study Institute
Panelist: Curtis Wynn, President and CEO, Roanoke Electric Cooperative
