U.S. States Ranked for Energy Efficiency

Massachusetts topped the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy's (ACEEE) list of most energy-efficient states for the fourth straight year. California, which shared the top spot a year ago, fell to second, Rhode Island tied Oregon for third place, and Vermont rounded out the top five. The states have robust energy-efficiency programs in their utilities, transportation policies, building codes and state government initiatives, according to the nonprofit advocacy group. North Dakota finished at the bottom of the list, behind Wyoming, South Dakota, Mississippi and Alaska. Overall, states saved 24 million megawatt hours. State investment in energy-efficiency programs has tripled since the first ACEEE scorecard eight years ago, from about $2.5 billion a year to $7.5 billion. www.usnews.com.