New Mexico is planning a rebate program this spring to help residents replace older, inefficient appliances with energy-efficient appliances.

The state will offer mail-in rebates toward the purchase of Energy Star-qualified appliances starting sometime in April 2010.

The program will offer $200 rebates on the following appliances:

• Refrigerators
• Clothes washers
• Gas furnaces

Residents must purchase the appliances from a New Mexico retailer. In order to receive the rebate, the old appliance must be removed from the home and properly recycled.

The rebates will only apply to purchases made within the yet-to-be-designated time frame and will not be retroactive to include previous purchases.

The program is one of 56 State Energy-Efficient Appliance Rebate Programs, popularly known as Cash for Appliances, that are being set up in the United States and six U.S. territories with the help of federal stimulus money.

New Mexico will receive about $1.9 million of the nearly $300 million in stimulus funding available nationwide from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).

For more information on Cash for Appliances, including dates for the program when announced, visit the New Mexico Energy Conservation and Management Division Web site or call 505-476-3372.