With federal leadership faltering, states are showing the way for energy efficiency policy. Congress seems unable to pass a comprehensive energy bill with robust efficiency policies. The Administration is eroding funding support for many core energy efficiency programs. Meanwhile:

• Natural gas prices saw all-time highs this winter, as North American production capacity fell short of rising demand.
• Gasoline prices at the pump are the highest in over 20 years, driven by rising oil imports and worsening fuel economy.
• Electricity costs in many states are going up, just in time for the summer cooling season.
• A year after the worst blackout in U.S. history, the reliability of our electricity system is still in jeopardy.
• Almost half of the American people live in areas that fail air quality standards.
• Growing signs of climate change threaten economies and ecosystems in the United States and abroad.

Some states aren't waiting on Washington:

• Massachusetts, Oregon, and California have instituted natural gas utility efficiency programs.
• California and New York are developing tailpipe standards for carbon dioxide, which will help cut oil consumption.
• Twenty states are operating public benefits funds that reduce electricity bills.
• Maryland and Connecticut have passed appliance efficiency standards that will save substantial amounts of electricity.
• New England states are planning ways to use energy efficiency and distributed generation to keep the transmission grid in shape.
• New York, Texas, and California are instituting new interconnection and electric rate policies for high-efficiency combined heat and power systems.
• Texas is using energy efficiency policies to address its air quality problems.
• Nine northeastern states have formed the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI, or "Reggie") to develop a mandatory cap-and-trade policy for carbon emissions. Similar efforts are underway on the West Coast.