Green Communities 2023 Annual Report
Designation Awards
The Green Communities Division, established under M.G.L. c. 25A, § 10, assists the Commonwealth’s
municipalities and other local governmental bodies to: reduce energy consumption and costs; reduce
pollution; facilitate the development of renewable energy and alternative energy resources; and create local
jobs related to the building of renewable and alternative energy facilities as well as the installation of
energy-efficient equipment.
In 2023, the Green Communities Division awarded $11,873,943 in direct grants to 111 municipalities, and
$987,350 to regional planning agencies to support municipal clean energy initiatives and capacity building.
Each of these grant programs are summarized below.
Under the Green Communities Act, cities and towns must meet five criteria to be designated a Green
Community and receive funding. Initial Designation awards are formula-based grants awarded to newly
minted Green Communities for clean energy projects at municipal and school facilities, as well as vehicular
fuel reduction projects. Grant awards are based on a $125,000 base for each designated Green Community,
plus additional amounts tied to per capita income and population.
There are now 291 designated Green Communities, representing 89% of the Commonwealth’s population.
Since the inaugural designation in 2010, DOER has awarded over $177 million in grants to cities and towns
to upgrade municipal and school facilities. These grant-supported projects leveraged $41 million in Mass
Save® incentives and cut annual energy costs by an estimated $28 million.
Three municipalities applied, met the requirements and were designated in 2023. This newest group of three
towns committed to reduce their energy consumption by 23,188 MMBTUs in five years, energy use
equivalent to heating and powering 179 homes, and greenhouse gas emission (GHG) reduction of 1,635 tons
equivalent to taking 344 cars off the roads.
Municipality Grant Award
East Longmeadow $160,170
Hadley $139,250
Southwick $146,220
Competitive Grant Awards
Once designated as a Green Community, cities and towns are eligible for competitive grants. These grants
provide financial support for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects that further the designated
communities’ clean energy goals. In 2023, existing Green Communities that have successfully invested their
initial designation grants and previous competitive grant awards participated in the twelfth annual round of
DOER Green Communities competitive grants. Grants are capped at $200,000 per municipality, with the
exception of multi-year building decarbonization grants, which were capped at $500,000. In 2023, grants
were solicited in the spring and fall.
Twenty-seven (27) out of twenty-eight (28) municipalities that applied for Block 1 Competitive Grants
were approved by DOER to receive $3,351,301 in funding for at least some of their requested project(s).
Representing an estimated energy cost savings of over $256,139 annually and leveraging $856,827 in utility
incentives, the proposed projects are altogether estimated to yield energy savings of 9,701 MMBtus, which
translates to the amount of energy consumed by 285 Massachusetts households. In greenhouse gas
emissions terms, the projects are estimated to reduce emissions by 586 metric tons annually – roughly equal
to taking over 130 internal combustion engine (ICE) cars off the road for one year.
Abington $200,000 Marlborough $175,734 Scituate $99,409
Amesbury $135,577 Marshfield $67,450 Shrewsbury $185,000
Arlington $100,000 Medfield $200,000 Southborough $57,042
Attleboro $110,050 Montague $71,400 Stoughton $200,000
Bridgewater $113,815 Northborough $127,194 Townsend $199,950
Carlisle $72,260 Norwell $173,887 Waltham $198,000
Dalton $17,815 Orange $144,168 Warwick $78,299
Douglas $35,684 Oxford $200,000 Westminster $199,999
Lakeville $110,855 Plympton $39,133 Windsor $38,580
Fifty (50) out of fifty-four (54) municipalities that applied for Block 2 Competitive Grants were approved
by DOER to receive $7,732,266 in funding for at least some of their requested project(s). Representing an
estimate energy cost savings of over $594,957 annually and leveraging $2,611, 527 in utility incentives, the
proposed projects are altogether estimated to yield energy savings of 31,168 MMBtus, which translates to
the amount of energy consumed by 241 Massachusetts households. In greenhouse gas emissions terms, the
projects are estimated to reduce emissions by 1,897 metric tons annually – roughly equal to taking over 383
ICE cars off the road for one year.
Acton $100,000 Gloucester $144,311 Millis $5,450 Sutton $190,172
Athol $39,989 Groton $31,668 Nantucket $177,160 Walpole $199,988
New
Auburn $155,244 Hanson $173,654 Braintree $180,013 Wayland $92,813
Ayer $151,530 Hardwick $200,000 Newton $500,000 Wenham $50,000
West
Blackstone $200,000 Holyoke $197,404 Northbridge $191,386 Brookfield $180,526
Charlton $94,422 Hubbardston $188,000 Northfield $178,910 Westford $97,530
Cohasset $196,006 Hudson $44,170 Pembroke $200,000 Weymouth $100,000
Dudley $80,394 Ipswich $167,500 Plainville $199,984 Wilbraham $54,358
Dunstable $5,000 Kingston $66,488 Quincy $199,685 Williamstown $196,300
East
Bridgewater $200,000 Leominster $123,997 Royalston $168,689 Winchester $99,999
Egremont $199,913 Malden $193,022 Rutland $200,000 Winthrop $191,133
Everett $200,000 Medway $84,828 Saugus $200,000
Fairhaven $125, 810 Merrimac $14,800 Stow $500,000
DOER staff works with communities to ensure energy projects are well thought-out and defined. Projects
that were not awarded funds either had little to no energy or emissions savings or needed additional scoping
and/or analysis.
For a complete list of grant awards and projects by Green Community, see our website.
Regional Energy Planning Assistance Awards
Regional Energy Planning Assistance (REPA) grants are offered by the Green Communities Division of the
Department of Energy Resources to augment municipal capacity necessary to: 1) participate in the Green
Communities Designation and Grant Program; and 2) advance clean energy projects in under-resourced
municipalities. The statutory authority is found under M.G.L. c. 25A, § 10, which established the DOER
Green Communities Division to assist the Commonwealth’s municipalities and other local governmental
bodies to: reduce energy consumption and costs, reduce pollution, facilitate the development of renewable
energy and alternative energy resources, and create local jobs related to the building of renewable energy
and alternative energy facilities and the installation of energy-efficient equipment.
All technical assistance agencies (regional planning authorities, councils of governments, extension services
and joint power entities) that provide clean energy assistance to municipalities were invited to apply. The
Program Opportunity Notice was posted on CommBuys (the public procurement platform administered by
the Operational Service Division) on May 1, 2023, and applications were due on June 23, 2023, Grants fund
technical assistance and expertise needed to complete energy projects in cities and towns with the aim of
reducing energy costs and strengthening local economies. A total of $987,350 was awarded for 11 agencies,
out of $1,461,500 requested. The grant period is two years and will provide direct assistance to 159
municipalities, as well as fund capacity building activities and regional projects to benefit all communities
within their respective regions. It is important to note that several of the regional planning agencies are
developing regional climate action plans through the EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG).
REPA will be used to bolster stakeholder engagement, particularly among EJ communities.
DOER established grant eligibility criteria for the following technical assistance activities: Green
Communities designation assistance, Green Communities support services, regional clean energy support and
net-zero planning.
Awards are limited to $150,000 per applicant. As total requests exceed program budget of $1 million, DOER
prioritized funding decisions in accordance with the Program Opportunity Notice. In addition, funding
requests were denied because applicants sought funds for unspecified projects or were not applicable to some
communities (e.g., funding assistance for project management of undefined clean energy projects or for annual
reports for municipalities that are not yet designated Green Communities). Finally, as this is a grant program
for under-resourced communities, those with energy managers cannot receive technical assistance for Green
Communities related tasks.
See chart on the next page for award information
 Regional Clean
Green
Technical GC Net Zero energy Planning
Communities TOTAL
Assistance Agency Designation Planning and Project
Support
Support
Berkshire Regional
Planning
Commission $3,350 $53,500 $5,000 $4,500 $66,350
Cape Light
Compact $6,500 $103,000 $0 $0 $109,500
Central Mass
Regional Planning
Commission $0 $96,500 $0 $25,000 $121,500
Franklin Regional
Council of
Governments $0 $75,250 $0 $12,000 $87,250
Metropolitan Area
Planning Council $37,500 $1,000 $0 $50,000 $88,500
Montachusett
Regional Planning
Commission $0 $79,500 $0 $30,000 $109,500
Merrimac Valley
Planning
Commission $0 $22,500 $0 $41,000 $63,500
Northern
Middlesex Council
of Governments $0 $19,750 $0 $50,000 $69,750
Old Colony
Planning
Commission $0 $54,000 $0 $25,000 $79,000
Pioneer Valley
Planning
Commission $15,000 $59,250 $25,000 $0 $99,250
Southeastern
Regional Planning
and Economic
Development
District $0 $73,250 $0 $20,000 $93,250
TOTAL $62,350 $637,500 $30,000 $257,500 $987,350
 Municipal Energy Technical Assistance Grants
Municipal Energy Technical Assistance (META) grants are offered once a year by the Green Communities
Division of the Department of Energy Resources.
All municipalities, regional school districts, and water/wastewater districts were invited to apply for META
via a Program Opportunity Notice (PON) that was posted on CommBuys (the public procurement platform
administered by the Operational Services Division) on September 19, 2022; applications were due
November 18, 2022. Municipalities were not required to be a designated Green Community to apply.
Eligible applicants can apply for up to $15,000 to fund technical assistance and expertise needed to
complete energy projects in cities and towns with the aim of reducing energy costs, reducing ghg emissions,
and decarbonizing local buildings and fleets. A total of $344,736 was awarded to 24 municipalities.
Grantee META Category Grant amount
Andover Energy Resiliency $15,000
Arlington Fleet Assessment $10,000
Athol ASHRAE audit/Water efficiency $14,790
Attleboro Renewable Thermal Studies $15,000
Becket Energy Storage $9,361
Edgartown Energy Resiliency $10,585
Haverhill Renewable Thermal Studies $15,000
Holyoke Renewable Thermal Studies $15,000
Ipswich OA for ESPC $15,000
Manchester Renewable Thermal Studies $15,000
Methuen Energy Resiliency $15,000
Middleborough ASHRAE Audit $15,000
Monterey Community Shared Solar $15,000
Nahant Renewable Thermal Studies $15,000
New Salem Energy Resiliency $15,000
North Adams Retro‐Commissioning $15,000
Northampton Renewable Thermal Studies $15,000
Norwood Fleet Assessment $15,000
Oak Bluffs Energy Resiliency $15,000
Sharon Fleet Assessment $15,000
Topsfield Renewable Thermal Studies $15,000
Wenham Renewable Thermal Studies $15,000
Whately Fleet Assessment $15,000
Williamsburg Retro‐Commissioning $15,000