LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has recognized KB Home (NYSE: KBH) with two 2014 ENERGY STAR® Partner of the Year Awards: Sustained Excellence, for its continued leadership in protecting the environment through superior energy efficiency, and Climate Communications, for its outstanding efforts to raise consumer awareness about climate change. KB Home is the only homebuilder to earn ENERGY STAR’s Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence award for four years in a row, and is now the first and only homebuilder to receive ENERGY STAR’s Partner of the year – Climate Communications award, a new award category introduced for the first time in 2014. KB Home’s accomplishments were recognized at an awards ceremony in Washington, D.C. on April 29, 2014.
KB Home, an ENERGY STAR partner since 2000, was honored for its long-term commitment to energy efficiency. It has built more than 82,000 ENERGY STAR certified homes since then, and builds all of its new homes to the ENERGY STAR program’s Version 3 guidelines, which can help lower the total cost of homeownership. The EPA estimates that, in one year, families living in those more than 82,000 ENERGY STAR certified homes will save more than $24 million on their utility bills while preventing greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from 29,000 vehicles.
“It is an honor to be recognized with these prestigious ENERGY STAR awards, for our energy-efficient KB homes and our efforts to educate consumers about the positive impact energy efficiency can have on the environment,” said Jeffrey Mezger, president and chief executive officer of KB Home. “KB Home may be the name listed on these awards, but our homeowners are the ones who truly win with ENERGY STAR.”
Across the U.S., top companies and organizations are leading the way toward a more energy-efficient future through their participation in ENERGY STAR.
Through 2013, with help from ENERGY STAR, the EPA estimates that American families and businesses have saved $297 billion on utility bills and prevented more than 2.1 billion metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions.
“KB Home has earned EPA’s highest ENERGY STAR award – the 2014 Partner of the Year – Sustained Excellence Award – because of its unwavering commitment to helping consumers become increasingly more energy efficient,” said EPA Deputy Administrator Bob Perciasepe. “KB Home was also recognized as a 2014 Partner of the Year – Climate Communications award winner for its innovative use of marketing and communications to raise the public’s awareness of climate change.”
“An informed public can make smarter choices about the purchases they make and the impact that they have on the environment and our changing climate,” Perciasepe continued.
The 2014 Partner of the Year - Sustained Excellence Awards are given to a variety of organizations to recognize their contributions to reducing greenhouse gas emissions through superior energy efficiency. These winners have reduced greenhouse gas emissions by setting and achieving aggressive goals, and employing innovative energy efficiency approaches. These awards recognize ongoing leadership across the ENERGY STAR program, including energy-efficient products, services, new homes, and buildings in the commercial, industrial, and public sectors. Award winners are selected from the 16,000 organizations that participate in the ENERGY STAR program.
For more information on KB Home and its ENERGY STAR certified new homes, visit kbhome.com or call 888-KB-HOMES.
About KB Home
KB Home is one of the largest and most recognized homebuilding companies in the United States. Since its founding in 1957, the company has built more than half a million quality homes. KB Home's signature Built to Order™ approach lets each buyer customize their new home from lot location to floor plan and design features. As a leader in utilizing state-of-the-art sustainable building practices, all KB homes are highly energy efficient and meet strict ENERGY STAR® guidelines. This helps to lower monthly utility costs for homeowners, which the company demonstrates with its proprietary KB Home Energy Performance Guide® (EPG®). KB Home has been named by the EPA as an ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year Sustained Excellence Award winner for four straight years and a WaterSense® Partner of the Year for three consecutive years. Los Angeles-based KB Home was the first homebuilder listed on the New York Stock Exchange, and trades under the ticker symbol "KBH." For more information about KB Home's new home communities, call 888-KB-HOMES or visit www.kbhome.com.
About ENERGY STAR
ENERGY STAR was introduced by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1992 as a voluntary market-based partnership to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through increased energy efficiency. Today, ENERGY STAR offers businesses and consumers energy-efficient solutions to save energy, money, and help protect the environment for future generations. 16,000 organizations are ENERGY STAR partners committed to improving the energy efficiency of products, homes, and buildings. For more information about ENERGY STAR, visit www.energystar.gov or call toll-free 1-888-STAR-YES (1-888-782-7937).
