Greenwire: Tens of thousands of Iowa residents yesterday swamped phone lines and crashed a state Web site to get $2.8 million in government rebates for energy-efficient appliances. State officials last week predicted that the money would take at least two weeks to distribute, but it was gone in less than eight hours.
After disappointing responses in Georgia and Michigan, Iowa officials said they expected a calm rollout for the rebate program. The state was distributing rebates of between $100 and $500 for more efficient heaters, refrigerators, air conditioners, washing machines and dishwashers. The rebates had all been claimed by 3:45 p.m. on Monday, which Office of Energy Independence officials chalked up to “Iowa’s spirited and proactive response to energy efficiency.” A launch in Minnesota experienced a similar rush of service.
Helgeson Enterprises, the Minnesota company that was contracted to run the phone lines and Web site, reported it received more than double the projected 11,000 Web hits per hour. Kenny Kuss, an appliance manager at a Sears store in Des Moines, said there was a wide range of customers at the store. He thought that most people were attracted to the program because of the potential savings, not environmental concerns (Jeff Eckhoff, Des Moines Register, March 2). – JP