A household is energy poor when they cannot meet energy needs. Despite its prevalence, the US has not formally recognized energy poverty as a problem distinct from general poverty at the federal level, which limits effective responses. In this Review, we examine the measurement and evaluative metrics used by the two federally-funded energy programs focused on reducing high energy bills to understand how program eligibility requirements and congressional funding appropriations have shaped the national understanding and implementation of energy poverty assistance. We find that current measurement and evaluative metrics hinge on the distribution of government resources and the number of vulnerable households assisted, rather than improving household well-being and reducing overall energy poverty. We suggest that comparisons to formal food insecurity and fuel poverty recognition and national responses in the US and UK, respectively, can help inform the development of more comprehensive US responses to energy poverty going forward.

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INTRODUCTION The University of Florida (UF) and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) are evaluating the hygrothermal (heat and moisture flow) performance and durability of sealed attic construction where open cell spray polyurethane foam (ocSPF) insulation is applied directly to the underside of the roof deck. During the 2015–2016 fiscal year and with financial support from the Florida Building Commission (FBC) and the Florida Roofing and Sheet Metal Contractors Association (FRSA), UF and the ORNL Building Technology Research Integration Center (BTRIC) completed Phase I of a study that setup four residential home demonstrations in Florida climate zones CZ-1A and CZ-2A. Field measurements for the homes are listed in Table 1. The four homes are instrumented for measuring temperature and relative humidity of the indoor living space, the outdoor air and the attic air. In addition, the temperature, relative humidity and moisture content of the roof sheathing are being monitored and recorded by remotely-accessible data acquisition equipment. Air leakage tests on the whole house, on the sealed attic and in the HVAC ducts were conducted on all four homes, Table 1. Digital and infrared images were captured to document the thermal performance of the sealed attics. Field tests commenced on June 1, 2016. Data acquisition will continue for one full year to document heat and moisture flows, which, in turn will be used in a second phase of work to benchmark an analytical tool kit for predicting the heat and moisture flows in Florida's hot and humid climate. The second phase of work is pending approval by the FBC.