SAVANNAH, Georgia (AFP) – President Barack Obama on Tuesday unveiled plans to give hefty reimbursements to US homeowners who make home improvements designed to conserve energy.
The president urged Congress to approve the plans to give a shot in the arm to the lagging US construction industry -- one of the sectors hardest hit by the economic slump.
"If a homeowner decides to do work on his or her house -- to put in new windows, to replace a heating unit, to insulate an attic, to redo a roof -- the homeowner would be eligible for a rebate from the store or the contractor for 50 percent of the cost of each upgrade up to 1,500 dollars," the president explained in remarks delivered at Savannah Technical College in Georgia.
"If you decided to retrofit your whole house to greatly reduce your energy use, you'd be eligible for a rebate of up to 3,000 dollars," the president said.
Obama said Americans would see big savings in their energy bills, as well as at the cash register.
"These are big incentives," he said. "You'd get these rebates instantly from the hardware store or the contractor... right there when you paid."
