Where are we now?
July 3, 2008
City programs don’t run on their own for free
Proponents of the plan to require energy-efficient upgrades are considering several measures that will put additional strain on the city’s budget and resources. The latest ideas include a mechanism to measure voluntary participation. This calls for tracking the timing and type of upgrades to individual houses to make sure the right work was completed within one year from the point of sale. If unrealistic quota goals aren’t met, compliance becomes mandatory. At that point, add a means to ensure that homeowners comply and a process to punish those who don’t. The city must also maintain compliance records to determine future requirements for every property. Staff will have to process exemption requests, determine which upgrades are acceptable when technologies change, and perhaps even decide on acceptable upgrades for individual houses, as costs and paybacks may vary. These types of city programs don’t run on their own; they take staff to manage, monitor, and execute them. There are only two ways to pay for this type of bureaucracy: tap into a city budget that’s facing a $20 million deficit next year by chipping away other city services, or pass these costs on in user fees or a higher tax rate. Read the document (PDF format).
June 27, 2008
Don’t mandate—motivate with your Keep Austin Affordable yard sign
If you support energy efficiency and affordability in Austin, show it with a Keep Austin Affordable yard sign. Featuring the slogan, “Don’t Mandate. Motivate,” these signs will send a clear message to the City Council and Mayor Wynn that Austinites support protecting our environment and affordability for Austin homeowners. Contact us to request your own yard sign (please note your request in “comments”), and we’ll get one out to you within the week. Help spread the word about Keep Austin Affordable and show your community that you believe education and incentives, not mandates, are the right way to achieve energy efficiency in Austin.
June 13, 2008
If it’s no big deal, why protest so much?
Mayor Will Wynn continued to go on the defensive this week regarding the city’s plans to require energy-efficient upgrades to our homes. He says we’re making a big deal out of a relatively small matter. He emphasizes that nothing has been decided—that whatever decision the Austin City Council ultimately makes won’t be very costly, and it won’t be mandatory. The message is essentially an age-old promise that politicians make: Trust us. We’re going to do the right thing. However, are Austin’s citizens really willing to do that? Earlier this week, KVUE News broadcast a story with a familiar pattern. The mayor says he wants to set the record straight. But a healthy amount of skepticism remains. Read the story, view the clip.
June 12, 2008
The devil’s in the details
Mayor Will Wynn’s top policy aide confirmed in today’s Austin American-Statesman that the mayor’s plan would require homeowners to get a $300 energy audit, something that Austin Energy currently provides for free, and homebuyers would pay for the upgrades within one year of purchasing the home, up to 0.5% of the home’s purchase price. On a $200,000 home, the additional costs would amount to $1,000. “Anyone who thinks the city isn’t on the cusp of proposing ordinances that regulate the sale of property based on energy efficiencies, as well as the way we live, is dancing with the pixies,” writes one homeowner in his neighborhood association’s blog. Keep Austin Affordable has always been about getting at the truth.
June 6, 2008
City’s energy-efficiency ‘compromise’ still threatens homeowners’ rights
Fox 7 News reported yesterday on the city’s consideration of making energy upgrades to homes voluntary before they become mandatory. Under this latest “compromise” approach, should Austin’s homeowners not meet unrealistic quota deadlines set by the city, then mandatory requirements will automatically become law. Everyone wants a more energy-efficient Austin, but mandating what homeowners must do is the wrong way to go about it. And while some city leaders continue to criticize us for telling the public what they’re up to, they offer no clarity either. Even though the Austin City Council resolution that created the task force explicitly provides instructions to devise protocols that “shall apply to owner-occupied residential properties at the point of sale,” which by definition affects sellers, mayor’s aide Matt Watson tells Fox News “it has never been the case and continues not to be the case.” Read the resolution (PDF format). Fox 7 also included a brief interview with Socar Chatmon-Thomas, 2008 chairman of the Austin Board of REALTORS®, who reiterates our opposition to mandatory upgrades because of concerns over affordability and private-property rights. Our common-sense, reasonable alternative encourages, helps, and rewards Austinites who voluntarily retrofit their homes for energy efficiency and savings. Watch the video clip.
June 5, 2008
Any relief ahead from rising (and new) costs?
Prices keep going up. New expenses are outpacing new income, especially for Austin residents. We believe in energy efficiency and protecting our environment. But some City of Austin leaders want to saddle energy-efficiency upgrades on homeowners at the point of sale. We respectfully ask, How much is too much? The Austin Business Journal’s May 30-June 5 issue includes a story headlined, Report: Austinites faced with higher taxes, smaller paychecks. The story cites the annual Combined Cost of Government Index, which shows that 8.6% of an Austin family’s income now goes toward local taxes, “the highest percentage in the index’s 18-year history.” Read the story (PDF format).
May 30, 2008
Keep Austin Affordable says, Follow the money
We have always been about shedding light on the inner workings of our City Council. Specifically when it comes to imposing a grand (and very expensive) vision on the thinning wallets of Austin residents. Several members of the Energy Efficiency Retrofit Task Force stand to make a lot of money on the possible mandates being proposed. Some are pushing for more comprehensive (and, you guessed it, expensive) energy audits instead of those that Austin Energy offers for free now. Isn’t that a conflict of interest? Decide for yourself. See which groups are represented on the task force. Read the document (PDF format).
May 22, 2008
Task force considers incentives before mandates
Yesterday, the Austin City Council’s Energy Efficiency Retrofit Task Force discussed the possibility of trying a voluntary “energy-saver home” program for Austinites before mandating the standards. Certain thresholds would have to be met in order to avoid mandatory energy-efficient upgrades at the point of sale. After one year of the voluntary program, 25% of non-exempt homes sold in Austin would have to meet certain energy-efficient standards and 45% after the second year. “If the targets are not met in any two consecutive years,” says a task force draft document, “energy upgrades would automatically become mandatory.” Because of its unrealistic goals, this plan, as it stands, is a two-year waiting period until mandatory point-of-sale upgrades. Read the document (PDF format).
May 21, 2008
TexasRealEstate.com issues columnist weighs in
Marty Kramer, issues columnist for TexasRealEstate.com, devotes his current online column to what’s happening here in Austin with the city’s efforts to require energy-efficient retrofits to existing homes. Kramer’s latest entry carries the headline, “Next on the city council’s agenda … your weather stripping.” Read Kramer's column.
May 9, 2008
Keep Austin Affordable supports better way to go green
City of Austin officials, notably Mayor Will Wynn, have criticized the Keep Austin Affordable campaign for opposing a proposal that, they say, doesn’t exist. What does exist is a city task force to mandate energy efficiency upgrades to Austin homes. The charter for that task force stipulates all recommendations made must be enforced at the "point-of-sale." This dictates a bad approach to a worthy goal. We oppose punitive, mandatory point-of-sale upgrades and support an alternative that will incentivize more Austin homeowners to actually help the environment. Read what’s wrong with point-of-sale and what’s right with the alternative.
May 7, 2008
Alternatives to point-of-sale measure presented to task force
Today, Charles Porter, Past Chairman of the Austin Board of REALTORS® and member of the Energy Efficiency Retrofit Task Force, presented an alternative proposal to his fellow task force members to promote energy efficiency in Austin without requiring expensive mandates enforced when Austinites buy and sell homes.
Read the alternative proposal
May 6, 2008
Statesman reports on home-affordability issue
The Austin American-Statesman today reported on the Keep Austin Affordable campaign. Obviously we disagree with the characterization of the campaign presented in the story. We also stand behind the accuracy of all our communications. However, we're glad more Austin residents are becoming aware of this issue. The Statesman quoted Austin Board of REALTORS® Chairman Socar Chatmon-Thomas, who said this about the campaign: "It's not scaring the public; it's informing the public." Our goal is to focus the eyes and ears of Austinites on this issue. Through public awareness and open, honest discussions, we hope that Austin homeowners will be able to give input to the city, before any proposal is adopted, to achieve both energy efficiency and affordability.
Read article
May 2, 2008
KVET radio examines accuracy of campaign
KVET 98.1 FM morning show hosts Bucky Godbolt and Bob Cole yesterday discussed the “point of sale” mandates being considered by the City of Austin. The show co-hosts explored the accuracy of the message delivered in the Keep Austin Affordable campaign and called attention to the potential costs involved in a homeowner requirement to upgrade homes. Listen to audio clip
May 1, 2008
News 8 Austin story asks who will pay?
News 8 Austin asks a legitimate question: Who is going to pay for these upgrades? If the sellers do, some may have to take out loans just to sell their homes. If buyers do, some families may be forced to finance their upgrades on a home they can barely afford to begin with. Read article
April 29, 2008
Local news station runs story on Keep Austin
Affordable campaign
Austin’s NBC affiliate, KXAN, broadcast a story today about Keep Austin Affordable’s efforts to inform local citizens of a possible new regulation that could make buying a home more expensive—perhaps even putting homeownership out of reach of some. The TV station interviewed Mayor Will Wynn who, along with some Austin City Council members, has favored an ordinance requiring all homes to be retrofitted with energy-efficient upgrades at the point of sale. The reporter said that Wynn and some other council members claim the ads are misleading since a task force has just started discussing what the ordinance will say. In the interview, though, Wynn offered specifics on what he thinks the task force will recommend. He believes the ordinance will require buyers to pay for any required upgrades within a certain time frame after buying the home. Austin’s homeownership rate in the fourth quarter of 2007 was 66.4%, more than a full percentage point behind the national average according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Read article
April 24, 2008
Appraisals increasing throughout Central Texas
Today, the Austin American-Statesman reported that economists expect double-digit increases in property appraisals in 2008. Market conditions like these make it even more important that Austinites do everything we can to keep Austin homes affordable, especially for those struggling to keep up with rising property taxes already. Read article
April 22, 2008
KeepAustinAffordable.org launches
The Coalition to Keep Austin Affordable, led by the Austin Board of REALTORS®, has launched KeepAustinAffordable.org. Designed to inform Austin homeowners about the potential impact of the proposed “Point of Sale Ordinance” before the Austin City Council, this site will keep consumers up-to-date about this important issue. The site’s goal is to support energy efficiency in Austin through positive means, such as strong incentives and consumer education, while supporting homeownership opportunities for Austinites.
April 18, 2008
Concern grows among Austinites
Established late last year, the City of Austin’s Energy Efficiency Retrofit Task Force is now forming a proposal for mandatory energy efficiency requirements for existing homes. Having already determined that these requirements will be enforced at the “point of sale” (meaning a homeowner must complete the upgrades and gain permission from the city before they’re able to sell their home), Austinites are estimating the proposed guidelines will cost homeowners anywhere from $1,500 to $15,000.
December 13, 2007
City Council creates task force
Today, the Austin City Council voted on Resolution No. 20071213-064 to create the Energy Efficiency Retrofit Task Force to “make recommendations for development of an ordinance relating to energy efficiency upgrades and retrofits for existing homes and buildings.” Because of the way it’s crafted, this resolution requires that – whatever energy efficiency requirements are proposed by the task force – they must be enforced when a homeowner attempts to sell an existing home. That means homeowners seeking to sell must shoulder the financial burden of costly upgrades and will, inevitably, be forced to pass these costs on to homebuyers. Read resolution (PDF format)
February 15, 2007
Climate Protection Plan launched
Austin Mayor Will Wynn released the Climate Protection Plan with the goal of making Austin the greenest city in the country. The plan has several goals, one of which is to “implement the most energy efficient building codes in the nation and aggressively pursue efficiency retrofits and upgrades to existing building stock.”
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