The State Auditor’s Office report charges that a project to improve energy efficiency at the Legislative Mall area is not paying off for taxpayers.
“State officials could not offer evidence of a study or thoughtful analysis that ensured the Sustainable Energy Utility (SEU) program was beneficial. Additional review and analysis of the contractual arrangements reflected that the state’s best interest was subordinate to the interests of the SEU and its partners,” an inspection of the program from the office concluded.
The energy conservation measures included changing light fixtures and bulbs, installing new heating and cooling units that proved to be unreliable and improperly installed, and reducing water flow on sinks through the installation of faucet aerators that were eventually removed because they proved to soak employees as they washed their hands, the report stated.
“By design, ongoing monitoring of cost savings for the Legislative Mall Complex project is solely based on calculations using manufacturers’ estimates of energy usage and spot measures of installed equipment. Further, the State’s accounting for the energy funding and contractual payments is so complex, the state will never know whether true cost savings is occurring,” the reported stated.
The summer concluded that “Overall, our work supported the conclusion that, three years into the Legislative Mall Complex project, the possibility of the State breaking even on this agreement is looking bleak.”
Tony DiPrima, who heads the Sustainable Energy Utility, did not respond to a request for comment.
