Alternative Business Models for Energy Efficiency: Emerging Trends in the Southeast

An analysis of approaches to allocating the costs and benefits of ratepayer-funded energy-efficiency programs in the Southeast - a region that generally lags in energy-efficiency programs - indicates that these programs would have only modest impacts on average electricity bills and rates, while significantly reducing electricity costs to participants. Utility earnings are reduced by energy-efficiency programs, but they can be restored by various business model features.