Resource Library
Strategies for local agencies to gain community feedback during COVID-19. High and low tech options.
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.
In this database, more than 200 CHP Project Profiles compiled by DOE’s CHP Technical Assistance Partnerships (TAPs) can be searched by a variety of characteristics.
This document introduces readers to the benefits of integrating energy efficiency with other distributed energy resources to achieve resilience benefits. It describes two DOE tools that each provides high-level assessments of the size and potential cost of onsite energy systems that can power critical facilities, and presents case studies with completed analysis on potential energy investments at existing facilities managed by three partners in DOE’s Better Buildings Challenge.
Moderated by the Statewide Best Practices Coordinator, this session features experts that will review changing trends in relevant energy/climate funding sources, eligibility, and selection criteria and provide tips for how to write a competitive proposal to advance your organization’s strategic goals, including a live demo of how review a solicitation for “fit,” “deal-breakers,” and “score-boosters.” The Statewide Best Practices Coordinator will also share CCEC’s new Funding Resources website and database that can help you identify new ways to pay for your initiatives.
In this June 2021 recording, Angie Hacker, the CCEC Statewide Best Practices Coordinator, interviews Shayna Hirshfield-Gold, Climate Coordinator with the City of Oakland, which is doing groundbreaking work to advance equity as part of its climate action efforts. As many in the State move forward from just counting carbon and kilowatts, we invite you to listen to a timely conversation on how to thoughtfully expand local climate work to effectively engage environmental justice voices and ideas and consider impacts and opportunities for historically underserved or marginalized communities. Shayna shares personal experiences and advice on pitfalls, best practices, and successes. Thanks to Oakland and Shayna for providing a leading example that other local governments can certainly learn from. https://www.youtube.com/embed/e7zpgFZ65cI?feature=oembed
The Governor’s OPR will soon release the HIgh Road Just Transition Roadmap, which aims to incorporate economic diversification, industry planning, safety net updates, workforce development and regional collaboratives in the process of transitioning justly into a sustainable California with principles rooted in equity, inclusivity and good quality jobs.
Funding for the transition will come from CERF and divided into:
– High road transition collaboratives ($50 mill for regional grants)
– High road transition implementation pilots($50 mil in Diversification grants)
– High oad transition Implementation Grants ($500 mil on economic development – job creation)
Local governments wishing to be involved in the process are encouraged to engage by getting involved with collaboratives and by engaging in sustainability activities and economic development plans within their jurisdictions. They are also encouraged to join the OPR Just Transition listserv to receive updates from this program.
An overview of building electrification technologies and common barriers and opportunities for scaling up implementation.
The Building Energy Benchmarking program requires owners of large buildings to report energy use to the California Energy Commission (CEC). These resources will help building owners and managers achieve higher building energy efficiency.
3C-REN’s Building Performance Training is tailored for current and prospective building professionals—with expert instruction, technical trainings, soft skills development and certifications on the latest energy efficiency methods and measures. Building Performance Training is available to designers, contractors, building and safety staff ,realtors and more. Learning units and certifications on various topics such as building science, energy code, decarbonizing technologies, passive house and more are offered through this program. To date, Building Performance Training has trained over 1,200 individuals and is currently exploring how to extend the program’s offerings to younger people and people going through career transitions.
California City used 0% on-bill financing, from Southern California Edison, to pay for a well pump retrofit. The improvement resulted in new infrastructure and $16,000 in annual energy savings, paying for itself in just three and a half years.
Equipment finance agreements from $10k-$250k; energy service agreements from $250,000 to $10 million for multifamily properties where at least 50% of unites are restricted to low-to moderate income households. The program complements existing affordable multifamily energy programs like SOMAH and LIWP
Loans from $2,500 to $50,000 for owners or renters of single-family residences with rates between 3.48% and 8.12%.
Leases and equipment finance agreements from $10,000 to $5 million with terms up to 10 years for small businesses and nonprofits which can be combined with utility incentives and financing programs.
This fact sheet provides an overview on using CHP to protect critical infrastructure, and how CHP can help create a more resilient and modern grid that keeps communities safe and protects businesses in the event of a large-scale power outage.
Steps to success: Benchmark/audit, Prioritize, Track Progress
Empower Procurement is excited to launch their new E-building Procurement Initiative. This program aims to tackle six initiatives: energy efficient products, expert energy services contractors, fuel switching resources: planning and installation, targeted specifications for low-energy building systems, new approaches to procurement operations, and training on organizations benchmarking and procurement metrics. The goal of this initiative is to build a collaborative network with local governments that provides opportunities for streamlined and cooperative procurement, while identifying challenges for electrification – particularly in existing government buildings. The product of this initiative will be represented in developed resources and best practices that are useful to the network.
The E-Fleet Accelerator offers school districts, higher education, governments, and select fleet operators support for the transition to electrified fleets. Transforming asset classes represents unique procurement barriers for institutional buyers. Fleet electrification is a prime example of this, and this PI will focus on addressing common gaps to improve the adoption of electric fleets for various purposes across diverse sectors. Our team provides customized insights to identify new opportunities to adopt electric fleets, and ensure successful fulfillment of electrification plans.
This Initiative provides free assessment to troubleshoot procurement processes. You will find tailored resources to help with procurement barriers. It has streamlined access to DERs product information as well as guidance on technology solutions to help make informed DERs purchasing decisions. The Products Procurement Initiative is designed to provide an opportunity for buyers to learn more about energy-efficient products and possible opportunities for cost savings.
Reach codes that exceed state standards, either voluntary or mandatory.
After the last major economic downturn, the federal government adopted the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), which provided stimulus funding for priorities including energy efficiency retrofits through the DOE’s Better Buildings Initiative. In California, three regions received millions of dollars to support new building efficiency incentive and assistance programs that targeted privately owned buildings and spurred economic opportunities for the hard-hit building trades. Twelve years later, those regions are now operating as Regional Energy Networks, with stable ratepayer funding authorized by the CPUC to continue offering services like BayREN’s Business programs. Recognizing that incentives and other financial mechanisms are critical for making the investment in energy efficient infrastructure more affordable and accessible to businesses, the BayREN Business program offers rebates, financing, and one-stop-shop technical assistance to ensure small and medium businesses can leverage all available energy saving programs and minimize out-of-pocket expenses. While this is an old example, it may help local governments consider how to take advantage of major State and federal stimulus efforts to create long-lasting support for building retrofits that also strengthen economic recovery. They may also consider how to design new or increased upgrade incentives for small or distressed businesses.
The California Hub for Energy Efficiency Financing (CHEEF) is now offering three financing programs to help your constituents updraig their properties. The GoGreen Financing includes a Home, Business and Affordable Multifamily program. This kind of financing alleviates upfront cost barriers for retrofits and can be used in combination with rebates and incentives or on its own! They hope local governments promote the financing program with their constituents who are waiting to take their next step on their energy efficiency plans!
The Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) is dedicated to breaking the link between unhealthy housing and unhealthy families. Formerly the Coalition to End Childhood Lead Poisoning, GHHI replaces stand-alone housing intervention programs with an integrated, whole-house approach that produces sustainable, green, healthy and safe homes. Through this model, Marin County is improving health, economic and social outcomes for low income eligible families across the country.
It is important for local governments to raise awareness about the current programs available to conduct energy updates. BayREN has identified that interagency collaboration is the key to navigate the complex landscape of programs offered by many organizations. We recommend LG’s should aspire to have successful guidelines that include knowledge sharing, a seamless user experience, and scaling for constituents. BayREN identified that useful tools to share knowledge include meeting people where they are at, partnering with complimentary programs, identifying your target audience and determining the best method of outreach based on their needs. This, followed by partnerships to present various EE programs from varying agencies will make for a seamless user experience. Finally, BayREN recommends combining rebates and financing to achieve savings greater than monthly payments so constituents can implement energy savings and reach renewable goals.
This interactive session will give CCEC Forum participants a chance to reflect on what they have learned during the 12th Annual Forum and key takeaways that will advance local and state clean energy and climate actions. Together we will highlight what is on the horizon for local governments as they lead the way in a promising new era for climate, equity, health, and prosperity. This event will feature roundtable remarks by LGC and REN representatives, breakout discussions, and a facilitated listening session where you can share insights and help drive what we do next.
Energy efficiency in California is a hot topic, and constantly evolving. Some things local governments may want to keep track of include:
Electric vehicles have received more attention than ever in California in recent years and are continuing to gain more market share in the U.S. auto industry, with ripple effects on the energy industry. To support greater EV adoption, local governments are transitioning their own public fleets to EV while targeting EV infrastructure investments towards the populations and locations that need them. This session will feature a moderated panel of local EV experts that will share thoughts on the current progress and opportunities for EVs in California, and innovative approaches to planning, procurement, and implementation of local EV initiatives that can effectively curb emissions and drive equity.
ILG’s Beacon Program provides recognition and support for California local agencies that are working to build more vibrant and sustainable communities. Beacon honors voluntary efforts by cities, counties and special districts that are reducing greenhouse gas emissions, saving energy and adopting policies that promote sustainability.
SOMAH in increasing access to solar jobs. 50% of participants in their training programs are either local hires (living in the community that the project is in) or a targeted hire (affordable housing residents, women, BIPOC, justice-impacted, single parents, facing barriers to employment). SOMAH provides a wage floor of 1.4x the local minimum wage and provides career development resources and workshops for trainees.
Our communities need cheaper, cleaner, more reliable electricity. With the increased frequency of power shutoff events and other power outages, communities need backup power resources. And with energy rates continuing to climb and shift, communities need resources that can help them control their energy costs and save money. When paired with solar, batteries can provide both backup power and cost savings benefits. In this virtual event, David Burdick & Ali Chehrehsaz of TerraVerde Energy will be sharing their team’s experience supporting California public agencies with solar and battery energy storage projects. We will discuss how changes in energy reliability and rates are impacting communities, the latest on funding & programs for these projects (including the fast moving SGIP incentive program, and a new solar refi program), methods for assessing the Economic Value of Resilience, and how local governments can take action in lowering energy costs and increasing energy resiliency.
Join the Empower Procurement Program for an exciting and collaborative workshop which will tackle the challenge of electrification strategic planning through the lens of DERs procurement. Along with fellow local government representatives, participants at various stages in their journey will have an opportunity to share best practices and gain access to valuable planning resources designed by subject matter experts. This session is intended to kick start a coordinated and networked support system to enable local governments to work together to meet this challenge in California. Empower Procurement is a CEC EPIC-funded program including partners from Energy Solutions, Prospect Silicon Valley, the Local Government Commission and others.
LGSEC is a statewide membership network representing local government interests to state agencies such as CPUC, CEC, and CARB. Together, LGSEC members advance sustainable energy and climate solutions to meet California’s climate and energy goals through knowledge exchange, targeted learning opportunities, and statewide collaboration. Sustainability staff can maximize staff capacity by becoming a member of the LGSEC to engage and represent their jurisdictions in statewide regulatory energy policy.
During technology development, Local Governments can serve as excellent partners for pilot or demonstration projects. It is a good best practice for local governments to partner with technology providers when they are applying for EPIC grants through the CEC. There will soon be a call for places section of the Empower Innovation website to help create connections for project partners.
A New York start-up LO3 Energy leveraged group purchasing to fund the Brooklyn Microgrid network, which allows individuals to buy and sell renewable energy in a peer-to-peer network. This both increased community resilience to frequent power outages and supports local economic development while reducing the community’s carbon footprint.
This Pacific Coast panel will discuss the latest in decarbonization policy in Brisbane, San Francisco and the State of Washington. From small cities like Brisbane, to dense urbanized cities like San Francisco, to the Evergreen State of Washington, we will discuss how to address any scale of policy creation to meet big bold climate goals. With less than 5,000 residents, the City of Brisbane is an unlikely hero in California’s journey to decarbonization, but in 2019 it passed the most comprehensive benchmarking and auditing ordinance in the country. San Francisco has recently launched an innovative approach, helping commercial asset managers plan for decarbonization, to better connect their local ordinance to the city’s Climate Action Plan. Lastly, the State of Washington will discuss their Clean Building Act, which aims to lower costs and pollution from fossil fuel consumption in existing buildings through a performance standard and incentive program.
Power disruptions and changing energy usage patterns in the past several years have underscored the urgent need for reliable energy. More than ever, local, State and federal governments are looking for the best ways to actualize commitments to economic recovery in ways that also advance climate action, energy assurance, and environmental justice. Through thoughtful load, feasibility, and financial analysis, local governments can strategically implement solutions like solar microgrids, battery backup, and coordination with utility providers to maintain critical public facilities and services. Plans can also identify programs and policies to encourage private property owners to implement these solutions and target attention where vulnerable populations may be being left behind. This session will highlight the latest energy reliability news, planning case studies, and financing best practices from communities across California to help local governments as they consider their own energy reliability or microgrid initiatives.
While many cities have begun the transition to decarbonize new construction through electrification ordinances, the conversion of existing buildings from mixed fuel to all-electric must consider the implications for low-income, disadvantaged, and historically under-invested communities. This session presents a facilitated discussion with the parties involved in the recently completed City of Berkeley Existing Building Electrification Strategy, which serves as a guide to an equitable transition of existing buildings from fossil fuel reliance to primarily renewable electricity by identifying the policy, funding, and regulatory processes which must be addressed. The City of Berkeley strategy is a first of its kind document which combines a parcel level cost and energy assessment of electrification options, funding mechanisms for the electric building transition, and a thorough evaluation of the equity impacts on the community. To develop the strategy, the project team conducted extensive and targeted outreach to Berkeley’s marginalized communities and received substantial feedback that guided the goals, timeline, and associated actions. The discussion panel will address topics relevant to their expertise and development of the strategy, including the detailed analysis of existing residential buildings, extensive community engagement, equity considerations, regulatory constraints, and electrification policy development.
The Center for Sustainable Energy has prepared a Sustainable Incentives Best Practices Assessment for the Port of San Diego, released April 2016. This is a great resource for local governments considering green leases and landlord-tenant energy efficiency solutions. The full Port Best Practices report is available here.
As California recovers from the pandemic and prepares for forthcoming effects from the climate crisis, local clean energy workforce development programs will play an essential role in sustainable recovery efforts aimed at “building back better.” Local agencies help people obtain skills and good jobs and, therefore, can be strategic about increasing the number of skilled workers needed to achieve a vision for efficient, decarbonized, and resilient buildings in the future. This session features speakers from local and regional workforce development programs that demonstrate innovative approaches to putting people to work in the energy and building trades. Join us to learn what these programs are doing to boost skills and job opportunities, how they were developed, what lessons they’ve learned, and what opportunities and challenges lie ahead.
Reducing natural gas usage by analyzing various building types and establishing reach codes across the region. Awareness, availability, assuredness, and affordability.
Regional partnerships provide energy engineering, regional climate action, and climate program support. It takes a village to move the needle and evolve work to support the region. Collaboratives provide an umbrella for everyone to come together to progress forward and explore activities, funding, and innovative techniques that LGs aren’t in the position to do alone. Facilitating and sustaining relationships can go a long way.
Resilience Hubs, Spaces and Blocks are community-driven gathering places which are demonstrations for climate solutions, and serve to coordinate & exchange communication, distribute resources, and support community programming during emergencies and year-round. The Northern California Resilience Network, the cities of San Leandro and Oakland and the Disability Justice Culture Club based in Oakland are all working to help build more resilient neighborhoods and robust resilience hubs. Part of this effort was a Resilience Hubs Leadership training held between February and September 2021.
The CPUC’s Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) offers rebates for installing energy storage technology at both residential and non-residential facilities. These storage technologies include battery storage systems that can function during a power outage.
Depending on the battery and how much you are using it, batteries can provide power for several hours, or longer. Battery storage can be an important component of a more robust emergency preparedness plan in the event of a power outage.
In preparation for the next wildfire season, the CPUC has authorized funding of more than $1 billion through 2024 for SGIP. This funding includes prioritization of communities living in high fire-threat areas, communities that have experienced two or more utility Public Safety Power Shut-off (PSPS) events, as well as low income and medically vulnerable customers. The funds are also available for “critical facilities” that support community resilience in the event of a PSPS or wildfire.
After enrolling in late 2013, the Conejo Valley Unified School District (CVUSD) worked alongside the SoCalREN Public Agency Program to identify and implement several energy efficiency projects.CVUSD is benefiting from the positive impacts these energy efficiency projects have had on their facilities, as well as the people who inhabit them including the nearly 19,000 students currently enrolled. By implementing efficiency upgrades, the District models smart energy behaviors while creating a learning environment where students and teachers can thrive.
This session will present a framework for collaboration between county, regional, and state agencies that provides a continuum of support for constituents to improve their energy efficiency. With many energy-focused programs and resources available statewide, it can be difficult for constituents to navigate the options and overcome barriers to making energy upgrades. Collaboration across multiple agencies is key to raising awareness about available support for efficiency and sustainability improvements at the local level. The webinar will begin with an overview of available rebates and financing that can be used together by constituents undertaking energy upgrades, followed by a panel discussion about how the three presenters work together to streamline the complex energy retrofit landscape for constituents. Participants will learn about available energy efficiency resources for their constituents, how to pair them together to provide continuity of support, and best practices for interagency collaboration to raise awareness in their community.
TerraVerde’s defensible accounting methodology for quantifying the financial benefits of having solar + battery backup power resources. The Economic Value of Resilience equals the avoided costs of an otherwise applicable solution (i.e. equipment & installation, operation & maintenance, fuel costs, permits) plus the avoided cost of power interruption (i.e. business interruption costs, electrical equipment damages, IT system damages, productivity losses, and spoilage).
The Clean Coalition has created a standardized VOR that will allow all stakeholders to effectively consider VOR when analyzing microgrid economics — making microgrid economics far more favorable. The increased valuation, in turn, will accelerate the proliferation of microgrids throughout the country and well beyond.
Local government leadership is truly the best driver for transformation to a clean and democratized energy economy. Regional Energy Networks (RENs) and Community Choice Aggregators (CCAs) are leading the charge and have deep and expanding roots in climate program deployment. They are crafting unique programmatic solutions to address local risks, including energy resilience, climate change mitigation, and workforce preparedness. Panelists representing RENs and CCAs will provide a peek into pilot efforts, programs, and partnerships offering community-focused initiatives with the potential to scale up and spark innovation in this era of renewed national commitment to climate change work. This session celebrates the change-makers and initiatives harnessing the power of local mobilization and engagement to shepherd in a cleaner, environmentally just energy future—one that succeeds by increasing access while building community equity and resilience.
A group of climate change practitioners convened in 2019 and again in 2021 to develop a collective statement regarding the State of Local Climate Planning. Released in May 2021, this Statement found that local climate action planning had reached an inflection point, and progress has become stagnant. In order to achieve the rapid transformational GHG reductions needed, the field must identify lessons learned from the last decade and move beyond traditional climate action planning processes to prioritizing implementation. The work ahead does not live with a single organization or small group of people: we hope these observations support reflection, spark dialogue, and fuel an appetite to work in a new direction with new partners. This session will be a facilitated discussion to support this reflection towards the goal of shifting practitioners and practices to implementation and action.
Best practices implemented: understand local market conditions; define and locate hard-to-reach customers and target programs accordingly, as appropriate; conduct sufficient market research.
EE improvements may be integrated into existing capital planning – EE improvements may also paired with clean energy installs or a campaign to reduce vehicle miles traveled (VMT) by implementing an employee carpool program.
If you’re looking for data on the most cost-effective project to start with, it may be a good idea to benchmark your buildings first and learn what buildings are using what amounts of energy. For more information on benchmarking, visit the Benchmarking Resources page. Looking for benefits of benchmarking? Check out this post.
Some local governments may prefer to start leading by example by implementing a program to encourage energy-efficient employee behavior (e.g., encouraging turning off the lights, using energy efficient computer setting, or low hot water usage). For best practices in implementing successful behavioral programs, see this post.
ll of these types of activities are actions promoted under the CPUC’s California Energy Efficiency Strategic Plan.
For numerous examples of what actions local governments are taking, check out Local Government on the EE Strategic Plan.
