Washington, D.C. – Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., urged the White House to speed up approval of contracts that will reduce federal energy consumption while generating savings for taxpayers. 

Energy Savings Performance Contracts allow government agencies to pay for energy efficiency upgrades through the savings in their energy bills, without any upfront cost to taxpayers. Energy-efficiency advocates have voiced concerns about the slow pace of approvals for some energy saving contracts in recent months.

The administration has set a goal of signing $2 billion worth of ESPCs by 2014. To date, federal agencies have entered into $500 million of agreements toward that target.

“ESPCs are a good deal for the government,” Wyden wrote in the letter. “These projects save money by reducing the cost of energy and operations in federal buildings, and they do not require any outlay of funds. For these reasons, I urge you to support a robust ESPC program and to reduce administrative barriers to the use of these contracts.”

The full letter is below.