Government+Assist+Programs

Government Assist Programs Task Report.

The purpose of this task was to find various government assist/rebate programs that Habitat for Humanity could benefit from. This was done through research on the Internet. The goal was to find ways that would reduce the cost of both the materials that are used in building the houses and also to find various tax credits/rebates for using items that met certain energy star requirements. This is important because it can ultimately reduce the cost that goes into building the houses and therefore reduces the amount that the owner has to pay. This information can then be used by Habitat affiliates throughout the nation.

The purpose of this task to find ways to reduce the cost of building a house for Habitat for Humanity and therefore reduce the homeowner’s costs. One way found to do this was through government assist/rebate programs. Lately, it seems that the government has being rebates for many different items. Habitat for Humanity already gets free lumber for their builds through a government program so it seemed logical that there might be other programs out there that Habitat for Humanity could take advantage of.

After doing some research online, I was able to find a website that listed some tax rebates for various appliances1. This website listed rebates that were available for both new construction and existing homes. For new construction, the available rebates were for solar energy systems and residential wind turbines. For the existing construction, rebates were available for various energy star items, including windows, doors, HVAC systems, roof type, and water heaters (non-solar). Another website was found that listed various energy efficient appliances that were eligible for a rebate2. It also had links on the page that gave exact rules for each state on who was eligible for the rebates and what sort of appliances were eligible. Some of the eligible items included clothes washers, dishwashers, refrigerators, and freezers.

There is still more work to be done in the future. More research is still to be done to find more rebate programs or government assist programs to assist Habitat for Humanity. Also, most of the information found so far really only benefited existing homes so the next plan of attack would be to find out if the current residents of the Habitat homes would be interested in these rebates. To determine if the rebates would be effective, the operating cost of the existing appliance would need to be determined and then it would need to compared to the cost of buying a new, energy efficient appliance minus the savings over a given period of time and the savings from the rebate for purchasing the new appliance. If the total cost of the new appliance would be less than the existing appliance, then if feel that the purchase of the appliance should be pursued. There is still much research to be done to see if there are any programs out there that would benefit Habitat’s new builds.

In conclusion, there is much more research that needs to happen to see what all programs are available for Habitat for Humanity to take advantage of. There seems to be many rebates available for upgrading an existing appliance. The next step is to see what all is available for building new homes.


 * 1) “ Federal Tax Credits for Consumer Energy Efficiency.” Internet: [], Nov. 16, 2010 [ Dec. 15, 2010].
 * 2) “ Rebates for ENERGY STAR® Appliances.” Internet: [], Sept. 22, 2010 [Dec. 15, 2010]


 * **TASK STATUS REPORT** ||
 * **Project Description:** |||||||| To research and find various government assist   programs that will benefit Habit for Humanity  ||
 * **Project Sponsor:** ||||  || Sponsor Rep: ||   ||
 * **Program Manager: Kendall White** ||||  || **Project Manager:** ||   ||
 * Period covered by the report: |||||| Mid Nov. 2010-End Nov. 2010 ||
 * **Accomplished This Period:** ||
 * Found Potential Tax Credits For Energy Efficiency
 * http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=tax_credits.tx_index ||
 * **Planned But Not Accomplished This Period:** ||
 *  Ø Research government assist programs that Habitat for Humanity can be apart of/benefit from. ||
 * **Objectives To Next Reporting Period:** ||
 * **Risks/Outstanding Issues/Problems:** ||
 * |||||||||| **TASK STATUS REPORT**  ||
 * **Project Description:** |||||||| To research and find various government assist   programs that will benefit Habit for Humanity  ||
 * **Project Sponsor:** ||||  || Sponsor Rep: ||   ||
 * **Program Manager: Kendall White** ||||  || **Project Manager:** ||   ||
 * Period covered by the report: |||||| October 2010-Mid November 2010 ||
 * **Accomplished This Period:** ||
 * **Planned But Not Accomplished This Period:** ||
 * Ø Research government assist programs that Habitat for Humanity can be apart of/benefit from. ||
 * **Objectives To Next Reporting Period:** ||
 * **Risks/Outstanding Issues/Problems:** ||
 * Ø Research government assist programs that Habitat for Humanity can be apart of/benefit from. ||
 * **Objectives To Next Reporting Period:** ||
 * **Risks/Outstanding Issues/Problems:** ||
 * **Risks/Outstanding Issues/Problems:** ||