Washington, D.C.--Congressman Eliot Engel announced that the Yonkers Municipal Housing Authority will receive $4 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to make existing public housing units more energy efficient. The funding is part of HUD’s recent allocation of $500 million in nationwide grants to public housing authorities, and was made available thanks to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

Rep. Engel said “As someone who grew up in public housing, I am proud to be able to announce that this money is available to improve the energy efficiency of these homes. This program compliments our overall nationwide effort to wean America off foreign oil and to combat global warming.”

The Yonkers agency will join 133 others nationwide in using the grant money to conserve energy through such methods as:
• Energy Star appliances
• High-efficiency boilers/furnaces
• Programmable thermostat controls.

“Grants, such as this one, will lay the groundwork needed for an America which is energy independent. I want to thank President Obama for having the foresight to include in ARRA such funding which finally addresses our long-ignored energy crisis,” said Rep. Engel, the senior New York member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee.