UPDATE – Federal: CPA continues to work for changes to the greener homes grant program
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The CPA is continuing its campaign to have propane included in all aspects of the federal government’s Canada Greener Homes Grant program.
On June 7, CPA President & CEO Nathalie St-Pierre wrote to Prime Minister Trudeau and Natural Resources Canada Minister Seamus O’Regan to express the CPA’s profound concern that the eligibility criteria of the Canada Greener Homes Grant (CGHG) did not include propane beyond off-grid communities in remote parts of Canada.
The CGHG was announced by Prime Minister Trudeau on May 27. It proposes to help up to 700,000 Canadian homeowners across the country improve the energy efficiency of their homes and reduce their energy bills.
The major shortcoming of the CGHG is that the focus is on electricity and almost entirely excludes applications that are powered by propane.
St-Pierre wrote to the Prime Minister that the CGHG needs to be amended so that all Canadians can have real choice for low-emission energy in their efforts to help save the environment while also saving in energy costs. She also stated that the CPA is ready to roll up its sleeves and work with the government to make the amendments that the CGHG urgently requires.
St-Pierre received a response on June 22 from the Prime Minister’s Office indicating that the comments were carefully reviewed with a recommendation that the issue be followed up with Minister O’Regan’s office.
On June 28, St-Pierre, along with CPA staff Allan Murphy and Rob Loenhart, met with senior officials in Minister O’Regan’s office. The CPA reiterated the concerns noted in the letter to the Prime Minister, including the urgent need for the program to be amended to include propane.
In response, the Minister’s Office directed the CPA to meet with a senior official from the Department of Natural Resources to further discuss the issue. That meeting is scheduled to be held later in July.
