Funding Energy Efficiencies
There was an informative article in “Miller-McCone”,
July/August, 2009
( pages 34-39 ) describing how the idea came to be.
A city creates a special district which then sell bonds. Loans are then made to owners installing the ‘energy improvements’. It started in Berkeley, CA, and is now in use throughout California. The low interest loans are repaid, over 20 years, by having the annual payment appear on the property tax bill received by the owner. This way the loan is connected to the property and not to the person, in the case of the sale of the property.
Loans can be used on a variety of energy efficiency improvements and the materials and labor required to install them properly. Efficiencies now include:
• air conditioning and ventilation systems,
• pool pumps,
• energy efficient windows, doors and skylights,
• window films,
• tankless water heating equipment,
• white -roofs and coatings.
Renewable energy sources now include:
• natural gas fuel cells, solar systems.
In July., 2008
AB 811
was signed into law. This law sets up the mechanism for a city to use to create the district.
Here are several links related to the use of this bill:
• From the
California Public Utilities Commission.
• A summary of information for the city of
Palm Desert
, the first city to actually use AB 811, done by
renova,
a company that says it “is about building sustainability”.
• And one more,
California Green Solutions.
They say of themselves “Solutions for Green Business & Sustainable Community”.
Here is 1 organization that helps a city get the whole thing going ( there may be many more).
• It has as its President the man who started the idea while working as Chief of Staff of the Berkeley mayor. The company is
Renewable Funding, LLC .
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