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In the most comprehensive analysis of electricity reliability trends in the United States, researchers at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) and Stanford University have found that, while, on average, the frequency of power outages has not changed in recent years, the total number of minutes customers are without power each year has been increasing over time

To help prevent victims of domestic violence living with HIV/AIDS from falling into homelessness, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is making more than $9 million available to state, local governments and non-profits through the VAWA/HOPWA Project Demonstration – a collaborative effort between HUD’s Office of HIVAIDS Housing (OHH) and the Department of Justice’s Office of Violence Against Women (OVW). More than half of women living with HIV/AIDS in the U.S. do not have access to stable housing and are at higher risk of experiencing domestic violence. Read HUD’s Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA)

As part of the White House’s National Clean Energy Summit, the Obama Administration and the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) announced its intent to issue a set of guidelines supporting borrowers seeking to make energy efficient improvements to their homes. In today’s announcement, FHA expressed the intent to allow borrowers to use Single Family FHA financing for properties with existing Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) loans that meet certain conditions

President Obama is committed to taking responsible steps to address climate change, promote clean energy and energy efficiency, drive innovation, and ensure a cleaner, more stable environment for future generations. That is why at Senator Reid’s National Clean Energy Summit later today, he is announcing a robust set of executive actions and private sector commitments to accelerate America’s transition to cleaner sources of energy and ways to cut energy waste

Following Typhoon Soudelor, FEMA called upon the expertise of our federal partners to help support the response. This included mission assigning the Navy and the Marine Corps to help provide relief to the island. The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) was conducting regularly scheduled training in the vicinity of the Mariana Islands when they were redirected to support the relief efforts.

the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released the final rulethat clarifies the portability regulations and requirements in the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program and helps improve the processing of portability requests. Portability refers to a feature of the HCV program that allows an eligible family with a housing choice voucher to use that voucher to lease a unit anywhere in the United States where there is a public housing agency (PHA) operating an HCV program.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has selected the University of California, Berkeley to lead a consortium of university, nonprofit, utility, and national laboratory partners in a new technical track under the U.S.-China Clean Energy Research Center (CERC) that addresses water-related aspects of energy production and use. Once the award is finalized, the U.S. consortium will match or exceed DOE funding of $12.5 million and work with their Chinese counterparts to bolster collaborative efforts to ensure energy, water, and environmental security and combat climate change.

Today the city is a rising leader in sustainability and urban innovation, with aggressive work to decrease pollution, promote public health and wellness, and the highest concentration of LEED buildings in Mexico. Of course, the cities of Zapopan, Monterrey, Guadalajara and Queretaro are not far behind in the race to be the leader in green building, make Mexico the largest market for green building in the Spanish-speaking world.

Building on the President’s Climate Action Plan, the Corporation for National Community Service (CNCS) and Federal partners, along with The Rockefeller Foundation and Cities of Service, today announced the selection of ten Resilience AmeriCorps cities. Today’s announcement responds to a recommendation made by the President’s State, Local, and Tribal Leaders Task Force on Climate Preparedness and Resilience to enhance commitments to building resilience in vulnerable communities disproportionately affected by the impacts of climate change – many of which are already facing economic or health-related challenges

U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) issued the following statement on the death of three firefighters fighting the Twisp River Fire near the town of Twisp, Wash

The percentage of renewable electricity purchased by U.S. companies in the information and communication technology (ICT) sector is growing and will likely increase significantly by the start of the next decade, according to a first-ever analysis by the Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

Fire departments in Arkansas, Louisiana and New Mexico have been awarded more than $2.4 million in preparedness grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). In Arkansas, the grants total $413,524 and cover firefighting equipment for the Lake Village Fire Department and the Lone Rock Volunteer Fire Department in Norfork.

Individuals affected by Typhoon Soudelor that occurred August 1-3, 2015 are urged to begin cleaning up their homes and personal property as soon as possible. Officials from the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) emphasize that it is not necessary to wait for a housing inspection before beginning this process.

The Federal Housing Administration today announced a new method for evaluating the lending practices of FHA-approved lenders and understanding the sorts of borrowers they are serving. FHA’s new Supplemental Performance Metric will complement the agency’s existing ‘compare ratio’ and offer more nuanced insight into a lender’s specific performance while encouraging lenders to serve eligible underserved borrowers.

On August 29, 2005, Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast of the United States, forcing more than a million people from their homes and tragically taking more than 1,800 lives.  Katrina remains the most devastating and costliest natural disaster in our nation’s history.  Today, U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Julián Castro and a team

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Census Bureau jointly announced the following new residential construction statistics for July 2015

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced that it has revised its regulation regarding the presence of animals on VA property. The updated regulation will ensure VA practices remain consistent with applicable federal law. It will also assist individuals entering VA facilities in developing a clear and consistent understanding of the criteria governing facility access for service animals.

Government should not be permitted to tell property owners, in essence, “the more land you own, the less you’ll be allowed to use.”  So argue Pacific Legal Foundation attorneys in asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the constitutional takings case of Donna Murr and her siblings Joseph Murr, Michael Murr, and Peggy Heaver.  They have been barred from developing a vacant lot they own along the St. Croix River, in St. Croix County, Wisconsin — and a state appellate court said they weren’t entitled to Fifth Amendment takings compensation because they also own a neighboring lot with a recreational cabin on it

The Energy Department's National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) will serve as the lead organization in developing a tool travelers and transportation officials can use in helping guide people through a city in the most energy-efficient way possible

USDA Rural Development Under Secretary Lisa Mensah today joined U.S. Senator John Hoeven to announce that Central Power Electric Cooperative will receive a $46 million loan from USDA to make critical infrastructure improvements.