By Bob Hendricks, Chapter Vice Chair
It's happening!
After several years of delay, the HOMES and HEAR rebate programs are finally being designed in Texas—and the public has a chance to help shape them.
These energy-efficiency rebate programs could bring $690 million to Texas households over the next six years. They have the potential to improve energy efficiency in tens of thousands of homes which would lower electricity bills, reduce demand on the grid, and make our electric system more reliable. They would also help lower air pollution, since in theory using less energy means less efficient, dirtier power plants run less.
Even more important, these programs could be transformative for low-income households. The rebates are intended to cover 80–100% of the cost of qualifying energy-efficiency upgrades for lower-income families, up to program limits (currently expected to be about $14,000 per household for appliances and $8,000 for energy efficiency upgrades). If designed well, these programs could help families struggling with high energy bills while making their homes safer, healthier, and more comfortable. While less, middle-income and even some wealthier families can also get access to a portion of the funds (up to 50% in some cases).
SECO, the State Energy Conservation Office, which is part of the Comptroller’s Office, is overseeing the program, and recently has selected a third-party administrator which will run and design the program. In April 2026, SECO hired APTIM Federal Services LLC (APTIM) as a third-party entity to assist the office with the design and implementation of the Texas HOMES and HEAR Rebate programs. SECO and APTIM have scheduled 11 public meetings to gather input. While the Inflation Reduction Act established the basic framework, Texas still has important decisions to make about how the programs will operate and which upgrades will qualify.
While the programs will likely not be available until early 2027, now is the time to make your voice heard. In addition to the 11 public meetings, Texans can also make comments online to SECO through their website. The comment form can be found here.
The Sierra Club urges Texans to attend these meetings and speak up for a program that truly works for low-income households. Middle-income households will often be able to invest some money up front and recover the savings over a very short time. Many low-income households cannot. Unless the program is designed with that reality in mind, much of the money intended to help low-income families may never reach them.
If you can’t attend the meetings, we encourage you to fill out the comment form.
We encourage participants to urge SECO and its design partner, APTIM Federal Services, to:
- Cover 100% of project costs for low-income households whenever allowed by law.
Include mini-split heat pumps and, if possible, window-unit heat pumps as qualifying equipment. Traditional ducted heat-pump systems cost more than the program limits allow. - Provide point-of-sale rebates through contractors and retailers rather than requiring households to pay first and wait for reimbursement. Many low-income families simply cannot afford the upfront costs.
- Use the simplest secure methods possible to verify income eligibility. Households already enrolled in programs such as SNAP or WIC should be automatically eligible whenever permitted.
- Utilize a modeled approach for energy savings if measured approaches would be too administratively complex. While measured approaches are more accurate, for families and the administrator a modeled approach will be far easier to implement.
- Where possible, the programs should be designed to work with, not against existing utility energy savings programs. Thus, even if in some cases, 100% of the costs of a project could not be covered by the HOMES and HEARS incentives, by “stacking” or “layering” with other programs they could cover the full amount (specifically for low-income families). Thus, the program should allow “layering” of funds so that private and public utility dollars can be used to help cover the full costs of a project, allowing more Texans to take advantage of these federal funds.
You can sign up to attend the in person Community Input Meetings here.