Training for Residential Energy Contractors Grant Program
Training for Residential Energy Contractors (TREC) Grant Program
Funding to train and expand Colorado’s HVAC workforce to support beneficial electrification.
Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, the Training for Residential Energy Contractors (TREC) Grants have two main goals:
- Upskill the current HVAC workforce in heat pump technology
- Build out training programs to prepare new entrants to the heat pump HVAC workforce
Sign up for updates about the TREC grant
The Colorado Energy Office (CEO) will offer two different TREC Grant funding opportunities: the HVAC Heat Pump New Entrant Training Grant and the HVAC Heat Pump Upskilling Grant. Eligible applicants may apply separately for funding from both grant programs.
Funding Overview
Type: Grant
Eligibility: Community Colleges, Trade or Technical Schools, Private Training Organizations, Nonprofit Organizations, and Organized labor or industry associations. Certifying Agencies, Employers, and Manufacturers are eligible for the Upskilling Grant only.
Amount: $50,000-$350,000 per awardee per grant program
Match: None
Application Rounds: Applications open August 2025
Eligible Applicants
Community Colleges, Trade or Technical Schools, Private Training Organizations, Nonprofit Organizations, and Organized labor or industry associations are eligible to apply for both grants.
Certifying Agencies, Employers, and Manufacturers are eligible for the Upskilling Grant only.
More details on eligibility for each program will be available in their respective request for applications (RFA) documents (coming soon).
To ensure statewide access to resources and training, applicants serving rural and rural resort regions are especially encouraged to apply.
Eligible Projects
The HVAC Heat Pump New Entrant Training Grant will fund existing or new training programs with an emphasis on heat pump technology to prepare new entrants to the HVAC workforce. Awardees may use these funds to:
- Expand curricula to include heat pump training
- Purchase training equipment
- Recruit new students
- Cover other costs associated with direct training activities (more details available in forthcoming RFA document)
The HVAC Heat Pump Upskilling Grant will enable existing workers to receive Energy Skilled Recognized heat pump certifications. Awardees may use funds to:
- Subsidize the costs of training and support services for contractors
- Purchase training equipment
- Cover other costs associated with direct training activities (more details available in forthcoming RFA document)
How to apply
More information on how to apply will be available soon.
Note: Eligible applicants may apply separately for funding from both grant programs.
Q&A Period
CEO will not respond to questions about this program until the request for applications is released. Once applications open, CEO will host a Q&A webinar. More details on the webinar will be available soon. Applicants may also submit questions via email to ceo_trec@state.co.us. CEO will post the webinar recording and answers to questions received via email to this webpage on an ongoing basis.
Applicants must submit questions no later than 2 weeks before the application deadline.