Managing Affordability
Former NARUC President Paul Kjellander, also former Idaho PUC President, is Senior Advisor at Public Utilities Fortnightly.
The subject of this painting touches on the impact of my poor parenting skills as my daughter Ally and her significant other, Thiago, attempt to manage the costs of new home ownership. As a young couple, money is always tight and even the thought of home ownership in your twenties is near impossible. So, saving every dime from day one is a necessity to deal with affordability issues.
Energy efficiency has long been considered the low-hanging fruit when it comes to saving energy and stabilizing homeowner costs. I remember growing up in a home where I never left a room without shutting off the lights. If I did forget, I heard about it: “When you’re paying the bills, you can waste as much as you want.”
Low-hanging fruit clearly has its rotten side. Well, that message never faded and — sadly for my kids — it got passed on to the next generation. As low-hanging fruit goes, a programable thermostat is an easy step, unless you are technologically challenged.
This painting depicts a young, highly-educated couple – a lawyer and a PhD candidate – as they navigate the instructions to set up their thermostat.