The $50 million Nonprofit Energy Efficiency Act spearheaded by the Orthodox Union Advocacy Center just became law.

The grant program for US nonprofits – including shuls, yeshivas and day schools – to make their buildings energy efficient, was included in the larger Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill President Biden signed today (Nov. 15).

The Act provides individual grants for nonprofits – in this case, up to $200,000 per institution – to purchase and install items such as HVAC systems, boilers and other equipment.

OU Advocacy worked tirelessly for over a decade to advocate for this legislation and spearheaded efforts leading to bipartisan support for this grant and its successful passage into law.

“We are very grateful to bipartisan leaders and the many rank-and-file lawmakers who worked to ensure this key provision ultimately was included in this legislative package,” said Nathan Diament, the Orthodox Union (OU)’s Executive Director for Public Policy, who helped craft the legislation and advocated for it in Congress. “The creation of the Nonprofit Energy Efficiency Act will help our foundational institutions become more environmentally sound and enable them to expand their offerings through energy cost savings.”

“We seek to be good stewards of our environment and assist our synagogues and schools in devoting more resources to serving people than paying utility bills,” said Mark (Moishe) Bane, president of the OU. “The energy efficiency program…will provide a springboard for our institutions to make the upgrades they have so long and so badly needed.”