Specifications include, but are not limited to: The consultant(s) will perform the following tasks as directed by and with input from the Department with respect to the final report for which they have been selected to provide services: The successful bidder will prepare a report that provides a comprehensive picture of the energy burden in the form of a clearly written and reader-friendly report. This will include identifying the percentage of annual household income spent (in the most recent year for which data is available) on all fuel types and energy uses, including transportation, space and water heating, cooling, lighting, appliances, and other plug loads. The successful bidder will include breakdowns of such information by income level (actual and relative to the Federal Poverty Guidelines), fuel type, and geographic region of the State of Maine, and where possible by demographic measures such as household size and whether customers are owners or renters. The successful bidder will evaluate seasonal fluctuations in the energy burden. The successful bidder will address where possible the “cliff” experienced by some customers who have an increase in income that is sufficient to remove their eligibility for assistance programs but insufficient to ease the energy burden to the comparable level prior to the income increase. The successful bidder will participate in a kick-off meeting with the Department, at which time a work plan and project schedule will be developed. The successful bidder will remain in contact with Department staff through regularly scheduled calls and monthly status reports. The successful bidder will identify, review, collect, and combine secondary data that is relevant to the development of the energy burden report, including data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the Census Bureau, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Maine Governor’s Energy Office (GEO), the Maine Department of Health and Human Services, the Maine State Housing Authority (MSHA), the Maine Climate Council, and the U.S. Department of Energy, the Maine Community Action Partnership (MeCAP), the Efficiency Maine Trust (EMT), other low-income programs including Low-Income Home Energy Assistance (LIHEAP) and other sources as appropriate, and where possible avoid duplication of work...
