For Immediate Release
Media Contact
Terri Eickel
860-680-2569 terri@irejn.org
(Hartford) The Interreligious Eco-Justice Network and religious leaders from around the state gathered at Shiloh Baptist Church in Hartford to thank the Governor for his support of vulnerable residents of CT and to urge him to extend that leadership by releasing critical bonding for energy efficiency and clean energy programs.
Speakers applauded Governor Lamont’s recent efforts to fund aid programs such as SNAP and LIHEAP, but also highlighted the role that energy efficiency programs and clean energy initiatives play in reducing energy costs and improving health and quality of life for CT residents, especially our most vulnerable populations and those with low incomes.
Teresa Eickel, Executive Director of IREJN, said more funding is needed to expand access to energy efficiency and clean energy programs, which she said have a lasting impact on energy bills. Eickel said, “As people of faith, we are grateful to Governor Lamont and the state legislature for helping people during this difficult time. But we believe that CT can do more. Energy efficiency is the most important step in reducing energy costs; expanding access to these measures will help people significantly reduce their energy bills long-term, even more important as we move into the winter months.”
Pastor Albert Bailey, Jr, Senior Pastor at Shiloh Baptist Church, spoke about the role energy efficiency and clean energy play in protecting air quality and water quality. “We don’t win unless everyone can breathe. If clean air and safe water are a privilege, the scoreboard is rigged,” Rev. Bailey said. “Environmental justice is the game plan—put the hardest‑hit, marginalized communities at the center, and we all move forward together.”
Legislation passed in 2025 authorized bond funding for a variety of energy efficiency and clean energy measures, including the Housing Improvement Revolving Loan and Grant Fund. The Housing Improvement Revolving Loan and Grant Fund can be used several initiatives, including the Residential Energy Preparation Services program, which removes health and safety hazards from the homes of income-eligible residents, as well as expanding or increasing access to energy efficiency and solar.
IREJN has identified that funding as a key priority. “Releasing this funding has multiple benefits; energy efficiency and clean energy reduce energy costs, especially for those who are struggling,” said Eickel. “These programs reduce the demand on our grid during extreme hot and cold weather. And they create more 34,000 good-paying local jobs.”
Rev. Shawn Fisher spoke about the urgent need for these programs, which have lasting impacts. “Investing in energy efficiency and renewable energy makes sense on so many levels. It helps the most vulnerable. It helps the planet’s air and water. It helps the lungs of the poor. And it just also provides a remarkable return on investment and happens to also protect the amazing creation that God provided for us to care for. Few things fully align like that. Why does it work like that? Because that’s how it’s designed to work. When we do the right thing for the right reasons, things just align like that,” said Rev. Fisher, Pastor at Bloomfield Congregational Church in Bloomfield CT.
Rabbi Jeremy Schwartz, senior rabbi at Temple Bnai Israel in Willimantic, spoke about the real-life impact of inefficient homes. “I know from my own home the difficulties of getting a building efficiency-ready. For my less-well-off congregants and neighbors, it becomes impossible without the kind of state help we’re calling for today. They’re stuck with leaky, sometimes moldy, housing; high energy bills; and homes that contribute to the extreme weather events threatening our state and our world. Releasing the funds not only makes financial sense for the state, it is a true response to the call to love our neighbors and care for the Earth.
The next meeting of the Bond Commission is scheduled for Friday, Dec 12; speakers were hopeful that the Governor would release the funds at that time.
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The Interreligious Eco-Justice Network is a faith-based environmental organization that works with hundreds of religious communities in CT; energy efficiency and clean energy for houses of worship and their members is a major focus of the organization.