This fact sheet on engaging elected officials was presented as part of the Statewide Energy Efficiency Collaborative (SEEC) Best Practices Forum on June 19, 2014 in San Diego by Liz Yager from Sonoma County.

As the Energy and Sustainability Program Manager at the County of Sonoma, Liz works with elected officials from both Sonoma County and each of the nine cities within the county implementing energy related program across the region. As a Division manager Liz oversees the Sonoma county Energy Independence Program, the Sonoma County Energy Watch local government partnership with PG&E, in addition to her responsibility for internal utility and sustainability programs in County operations. SCEIP is one of the most successful and long running PACE financing programs in the country. Because energy efficiency programs are complex and historically have not been a core function of local government, Liz and her team lave had to learn how to properly engage elected officials on the topics in order to retain support for these programs. Her years of experience working with elected officials coming from different jurisdictions with different agendas are reflected in the fact sheet.

To date, the community facing aspects of the SCEW and SCEIP programs together have been responsible for over $70 million in local investment activity and have created or supported over 900 jobs.