Ed Markey: “If there is a great energy efficiency program and if people don't know about it, will it help to actually increase…”

“If there is a great energy efficiency program and if people don't know about it, will it help to actually increase energy efficiency? The answer to that question, I think, is no. We actually need to have a plan to spread the word about Home Star to achieve the best results. Now, I do agree that Lowe's and Home Depot will have a stake in getting the word out, but the truth is that those large chains aren't the only companies that are going to be part of this program. The local hardware stores will be as well. So we need to create a balance here of ensuring that people in rural America, who might have hardware stores right down the street from them, understand that they can go there as well. We need to make this program as accessible as possible and as successful as possible in this telescoped time frame that the program will be in existence. In a modern American, capitalistic culture, we know that advertising is the central means by which consumers learn about good products.”