Contractors tell BPU unpaid energy-efficiency work totals 'in the millions'; board pledges follow-up

David Morales told the Board of Public Utilities that contractors who install energy-efficiency measures are experiencing long payment delays, with some completed projects unpaid for eight months or longer.

Morales said he personally knows of about eight trade allies who together are owed more than $4,000,000 for completed work, including HVAC and other smaller retrofit projects. He said the projects generate measurable energy savings for customers and the grid, but contractors are effectively financing those upgrades while waiting for payment from utilities or third-party administrators.

President Gulso Dobie said this was the first time she'd heard of such a widespread payment delay and asked Taryn Boland, the board’s chief of staff, to follow up directly. Dobie asked Morales to provide a list of the projects and noted staff would investigate whether delays are systemic or tied to a particular utility or administrator.

The transcript records Morales's estimates and the board's pledge to follow up; it does not show whether the payments were later resolved or which entity (BPU, a utility, or a third-party administrator) ultimately holds responsibility.