Hello from STEP-UP!

Greetings, University Park, from your STEP-UP team!

As you may know, STEP-UP stands for Small Town Energy Program for University Park, and our goal is to get residents’ houses energy audited and retrofitted. This ultimately means making houses more energy efficient and comfortable, while simultaneously creating a safer environment for your family, reducing energy bills and striving to make your community more eco-friendly.

For more information on how you can sign up and what resources are provided to make this process affordable, please visit our STEP-UP website.

Here’s the latest in STEP-UP news: to date 636 Maryland households have reserved for air sealing, insulation and duct sealing rebates, which means out of the $1,020,000 the Maryland Energy Administration's Home Performance Rebate Program had reserved for rebates, only $56,112 is left. However, $500,000 is being added to the fund, so start signing up for those audits in time to apply for the rebate!

The program will probably only be available to residents for the next five weeks or so, but once the funds are reserved applicants will be placed on a waiting list in case previously reserved funds are not utilized or new funds are added. The forms for the rebate application can be found here, so mail in your rebate applications today! (No drop-offs at the office.)

As for me, I’m here to keep you on top of all the latest that STEP-UP is doing. Whether it’s talking about new government rebates, sharing stories of local residents who are participating in the initiative, or keeping up to date with events sponsored by STEP-UP, I will be blogging to keep University Park residents informed about our program and how they can get involved.

So keep checking back on Patch, and make sure you sign up and STEP-UP!