This week’s Passive House sweep
- Maryland IRA resubmit status
- Resilient Phius ADU
- Columbia Efficient New Homes training
- EmPOWER electrification rebates
- PhiusCon and heat-pump sessions ahead
ExtraReach is still in the planning stage. This week’s sweep (roughly September 28–October 5) tracks a concrete Maryland Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) application update, a Fine Homebuilding tour that ties enclosure quality to outage survivability, free Efficient New Homes builder training that landed in Columbia, Maryland, EmPOWER Maryland rebates that remain live while federal programs wait, and a short list of sessions worth calendaring.
Maryland IRA: applications resubmitted, still not live
On September 30, the Maryland Energy Administration (MEA) posted a Program Status Update on its IRA Home Energy Rebate Programs page. After the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) issued updated guidance, states that have not yet launched, including Maryland, had to revise and resubmit applications. MEA confirms it submitted updated applications for both programs on September 30.
The two programs remain the Homeowners Managing Energy Savings Rebate Program (HOMES) for whole-home efficiency projects that meet a savings threshold, and the High-Efficiency Electric Home Rebate Program (HEEHR) for eligible electric appliances, equipment, and supporting upgrades. Neither is live. Launch timing still depends on DOE review and approval. No new rebate amounts or open dates appear on the official page.
Update the Maryland note from “still stalled / unconfirmed” to “applications resubmitted September 30, awaiting DOE approval.” Keep HOMES and HEEHR out of any near-term cost post until MEA’s page actually shows a launch.
Resilience tour: enclosure quality as outage insurance
On October 1, Fine Homebuilding published Part 2 of Building Resilience: a tour of a roughly 640-square-foot accessory dwelling unit (ADU) above a garage in Portland, designed with Passive House Institute US (Phius) performance in mind. Builder Josh Salinger walks through continuous insulation, triple-pane windows, energy recovery ventilation (ERV), fire and seismic details, and the idea of the house as a thermal battery when power fails.
The useful planning lesson is not the Pacific Northwest hazard list. It is the sequencing: continuous insulation and airtightness first, then filtered ventilation, then storage and backup so small loads can keep the space survivable. For ExtraReach, that is another way to say loads and enclosure before equipment catalogs.
When drafting resilience notes for a Mid-Atlantic plan, start with continuous insulation, airtightness, and ERV filtration. Treat backup power and thermal storage as the layer that rides on top of an enclosure that already limits heat loss and heat gain.
Columbia, Maryland: Efficient New Homes builder training
On October 1, the Energy & Environmental Building Alliance (EEBA) hosted a free full-day Efficient New Homes builder training in Columbia, Maryland (formerly the DOE Zero Energy Ready Home Version 2 program). Trainers Gord Cooke and Aaron Smith covered advanced wall systems, high-performance mechanicals, and renewable integration for Climate Zone–specific, cost-aware pathways.
The session date has passed, but the Mid-Atlantic signal still matters: DOE’s Efficient New Homes framing is landing in local builder rooms, and the same building-science checklist sits next to Passive House planning even when the certification path differs.
Keep Efficient New Homes (ex–Zero Energy Ready Home) on the Mid-Atlantic training watch list. When another free session appears in Maryland or nearby, it is worth noting for builders and for comparing program checklists against a Phius or Passive House Institute target.
EmPOWER Maryland: the live electrification path for now
While HOMES and HEEHR wait on DOE, Pepco’s EmPOWER Maryland Home Performance with ENERGY STAR path remains a live utility incentive for qualifying electrification and efficiency work. Program materials describe support that can reach meaningful rebates for eligible upgrades, with a reservation window called out through December 31, 2026.
Exact caps and eligibility belong on Pepco’s current program page, not in a memorized headline. For ExtraReach planning notes, the point is simpler: Maryland still has a utility pathway to track while federal IRA rebates stay pre-launch on MEA’s site.
Put EmPOWER Maryland next to the HOMES/HEEHR status line. Use the utility program as the near-term Maryland reference, and keep federal amounts blank until DOE approval and an MEA launch update appear.
Calendar: PhiusCon and Mid-Atlantic sessions
A few dates sit close enough to matter for the next planning week:
- PhiusCon 2026 in Phoenix, October 8–10.
- Passive House District of Columbia (PHDC) programming on October 15.
- Passive House Accelerator (PHA) Heat Pump Solutions Symposium, virtual, October 23.
- PHA LIVE on a General Services Administration (GSA) EnerPHit project near the Capitol, October 29.
Favor the October 23 symposium and October 29 Capitol-area EnerPHit session for Mid-Atlantic relevance if travel to PhiusCon is not in the cards. Capture one useful mechanical or retrofit note from each for a later journal entry.
What I’m carrying forward
- Mark Maryland HOMES and HEEHR as “applications resubmitted September 30, awaiting DOE,” not launched.
- Borrow the resilient ADU tour’s enclosure-first sequence for ExtraReach outage and heat-dome notes.
- Watch for the next Mid-Atlantic Efficient New Homes builder training after the Columbia session.
- Keep EmPOWER Maryland on the live-incentive sheet through the December 31, 2026 reservation note.
- Calendar PHA’s October 23 heat-pump symposium and October 29 GSA EnerPHit session.
Sources
- Maryland Energy Administration — IRA Home Energy Rebate Programs (Program Status Update 9/30/26)
- Fine Homebuilding — Building Resilience Part 2: the role of the building enclosure
- EEBA — Efficient New Homes (ZERH) Builder Training, Columbia MD
- Pepco — EmPOWER Maryland Home Performance with ENERGY STAR
- Passive House Accelerator — events and Heat Pump Solutions Symposium