Despite significant energy savings and cost reductions from local renewable energy initiatives across Wisconsin, a new report from the Wisconsin Policy Forum indicates a critical lack of consistent, statewide reporting data. This deficiency makes it challenging to fully assess project outcomes and quantify the benefit to taxpayers, potentially hindering future public support and critical funding.

The Department of Natural Resources' Green Tier Legacy Communities (GTLC) program, a voluntary initiative for local governments, has reported at least $17 million in energy cost reductions and 40 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of energy saved. This energy savings is equivalent to powering approximately 3,300 homes for a year. However, the report highlights that the program’s lack of statewide standardization has led to “challenging” interpretation, with only 13 of 42 participating communities providing comprehensive energy or cost savings estimates.

“Transparency is especially important for taxpayers, since implementation often requires upfront investment by local governments, even if the project promises long-term savings,” the report states. It emphasizes that standardized transparency and reporting could significantly bolster public support and facilitate access to crucial funding from lawmakers. The GTLC program, which commenced in 2010 with five communities, has expanded to include 42 volunteer municipalities statewide, undertaking projects in LED lighting upgrades, solar installations, building efficiency improvements, and fleet strategies aimed at reducing fuel use and emissions.

Among the various initiatives, water and wastewater treatment projects have demonstrated the most substantial impact. Five communities alone reported $14.4 million in cost savings out of the total $17 million and 31.7 million kWh saved, enough energy to power 2,600 homes for one year. A U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report underscores this potential, noting that drinking water and wastewater plants can account for 30% to 40% of total energy consumed by municipal governments, making efficiency gains in this sector particularly impactful.

Recognizing this, the state has prioritized renewable energy and wastewater treatment loans. The state Legislature’s budget-writing committee recently greenlit over $700 million for clean water funding in the 2025-27 biennial budget. Senator Howard Marklein, R-Spring Green, co-chair of the Joint Finance Committee, acknowledged the unmet demand for these funds, citing a Legislative Fiscal Bureau report that indicated a 154% spike in demand for the clean water fund and a 325% increase for safe drinking water loan programs during the 2024 fiscal year.

Despite the Wisconsin DNR’s record of providing over $7.3 billion in tax dollars since 1991 for wastewater infrastructure and environmental programs, the Wisconsin Policy Forum’s report concludes that the persistent lack of statewide reporting and data makes it difficult to definitively determine the full return on investment for taxpayers. The report notes, “While reduced energy can be described using dollars and cents (and kilowatt hours), outcomes like improved air and water quality are more complicated to quantify.” This challenge in communicating both costs and benefits remains a significant hurdle and an opportunity for Wisconsin’s local governments.