The Florida legislative session has ended with no major goal to increase the production of renewable energy in the state. Its a disappointment for sure, but not hugely surprising given the on-going tensions between the legislature, the governor, and the PSC, and a lack of clear consensus from all players on the best way to grow the renewable energy market.

There is one bright spot in an otherwise dim session: an important bill has passed that gives municipalities the authority to create Property Tax Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) Financing programs. This bill has the potential to create real growth in the future by providing a financing tool that makes it easier for homeowners and businesses to install solar and energy efficiency measures. Vote Solar worked with stakeholders to promote PACE and provided analysis and bill suggestions to House staff. To learn more about PACE, visit here.

PACE enjoyed enthusiastic support from stakeholders on all sides of the political spectrum, which helped the bill navigate a difficult session. In fact, PACE was the very last bill to pass this session! Supporters of the bill included the FL Association of Counties, the FL League of Cities, environmental groups, housing developers, and the solar industry. Dozens of cities have expressed interest in creating PACE programs and its very possible that we’ll see a statewide PACE program in the next year. Stay tuned…

Take a look around and you’ll start to see that things are looking decidedly brighter for solar in Ohio.  2009 was the first year that state law required utilities to generate a portion of their power from the sun.  With a solar energy target now in place, we’re working hard to build the road to that renewable energy future.

So what’s on the solar agenda in Ohio?

First, expect to see new solar rebate programs from your utility as it works to meet its renewable energy requirements. Vote Solar is working with the Ohio Consumer Council and others to make sure potential solar customers get a fair deal.

Second, there are a number of issues at play in the state legislature to smooth the way for solar adoption:

House Bill 113 aims to give solar a boost in schools. If the bill is passed, school districts with more than 5,000 students will be required to power some of their electricity through solar.  That means 71 Ohio schools would start tapping the sun for their electricity.

Senate Bill 223 would expand the state’s municipal financing option (PACE) to include energy efficiency investments. These PACE programs help property owners cover the upfront cost of making energy improvements. It’s an exciting new way for cities and counties to support a local green economy and job growth. Last year, this policy marked a big win for solar in Ohio, and we’re excited to see those benefits expanded to include efficiency.

And last but not least, Governor Strickland’s State of the State called for a personal property tax exemption for solar generating energy projects.  Removing this obscure property tax would clear the way for the development of solar farms. We expect to see a bill introduced shortly to address this remaining barrier to large-scale solar in Ohio.

Now we don’t want to sugarcoat Ohio solar policy.  There have been bumps in the road.  Three utilities- AEP, First Energy and Dayton Power & Light,  asked to be excused from their 2009 solar generation requirement.  We formally disagreed with the granting of a solar waiver.   The utilities stated the lack of approved RPS rules, however the solar generation requirement has been clear from day one.  We do expect to see those missing solar electricity hours generated in 2010.

We’ll need your help to pass these bills.  Stay tuned and get ready to go solar.

Illinois is looking at three big solar bills this year that, if passed, will change the state’s energy landscape by putting solar panels on rooftops and fields across the state. These bills mean new jobs and a brighter economic outlook for Illinois.

The first bill, SB3686, would establish small steps to successfully reach the solar requirement in 2016 in the current Illinois Renewable Energy Standard.  Starting in 2012 the state would develop 20 Megawatts of solar power and the amount would grow in achievable, bite sized pieces every year.

The second companion bill, HB6202, would expand the types of customers who qualify for net metering, a wonky-but-critical policy that helps consumers save money on their energy bills when they go solar.  Net metering is a simple billing arrangement that allows solar customers to get equal credit for the excess electricity their solar panels generate during daytime hours. The current law limits net metering to residential systems below 40 kilowatts in size.  That means office buildings, schools and factories can’t generate their own solar energy and “bank” it on the grid for times when the sun doesn’t shine. That’s no good for those energy customers and no good for a robust solar market.

The third bill, SB2505 allows new municipal programs that helps property owners make solar and efficiency improvements without upfront costss.  Called  Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing, cites across the country are starting up PACE programs to support a thriving new green economy.   HB2505 will improve a PACE law passed last year and make it easier for Illinois cities to use.

We have a lot of work to do to get these bills passed and we’ll need your support to help make it happen!

Moments ago, on a sunny rooftop just across town from Vote Solar’s office, Mayor Gavin Newsom signed the final piece of legislation needed to get San Francisco’s PACE program off the ground. When it launches on March 1, GreenFinanceSF will provide $150 million in bonding capacity to help property owners cover the cost of energy efficiency, water conservation and – you guessed it – solar improvements.

That makes it the country’s biggest PACE program – the municipal finance model that translates upfront costs into manageable property tax payments spread over 20 years. City leaders also emphasized the breadth of the program, which is designed to allow participation from many different income levels and makes financing available for an impressive spectrum of eco-upgrades (hello new EV charging station!). Our neighbors across the bay at Renewable Funding will be administering the program.

GreenFinanceSF will make solar and other green improvements accessible to more San Franciscans, and in doing so support new local jobs and a more sustainable future. That’s why, when the Mayor called it the single most important environmental announcement he’s made, it’s not just talk. The opportunity for carbon reduction through PACE programs is huge. The built environment is responsible for 72% of electricity use and 36% of the greenhouse gas emissions in the US.  Changing that carbon-equation is a tremendous challenge, and PACE represents a practical way of making real and immediate gains happen. Remove the upfront cost barrier and deliver immediate utility bill savings, and you’ve got a recipe for clean energy adoption at an entirely new scale.

We’re working hard to enable programs like this across the country, so we’re excited to see San Francisco come out of the gate so strong. 17 states have authorized PACE programs over the past 18 months. That is serious progress on the path to making solar mainstream. Let’s keep that momentum high, because there’s still plenty of work to be done . . .

Making it official: Mayor Newsom signs the last piece of legislation needed to green-light the city's PACE program. City Assessor and solar champion Phil Ting watches in the foreground.

Cities and counties across the U.S. are exploring a new solar financing option that helps homeowners tap the sun at no up-front cost. The city translates that daunting cost into a manageable property tax payment that’s spread over 20 years. Known as Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing, the concept is spreading like wildfire.  And here at Vote Solar we are doing our part to a fan the flames.

The city-run solar finance model got its start in California, but cities across the country are quickly proving that it’s not just for left coasters. Just last week Austin became the first city in Texas to pass a resolution to get the ball rolling on a PACE style program.  The plan, called Project Energize, would likely replace the solar rebate program that residents can currently use to lower the cost of going solar.  

Texas is now one of 14 states (CA, CO, FL, LA, MD, NV, NM, OH, OK, OR, TX, VT, VA and WI) where PACE financing is an option thanks to new state law.  Check out the resources in Vote Solar’s PACE Toolkit if you live in one of those states and want to encourage your city to start a program. Vote Solar is also working in the remaining states to pass legislation to ensure that all cities can create a PACE program. Don’t see your state on the list above, and want to help us bring PACE to your state? Click here to take action.

It’s not just local governments that see the value in PACE.  Just last week Vice President Joe Biden announced the White House’s support for widespread use of the PACE financing model.   Biden sang the praises of PACE financing at a press conference releasing the “Recovery through Retrofit” plan, which details how stimulus funds will be spent to maximize energy savings and spur job creation.  

According to the plan, the Department of Energy (DOE) received $80 million in requests from states to use federal recovery funds to support the development and implementation of local PACE programs.  DOE is reviewing those requests right now.  In addition, the Department of Energy plans to release $454 million more to states as part of a “Retrofit-Ramp-Up” program, some of which will be used to support PACE programs.

Want to know more about how PACE works? Cities set up special clean energy finance districts capable of issuing low-interest bonds. Participating homeowners can opt-in, use the bond money to pay for renewable energy and energy efficiency improvements, and pay the loan back through a long-term assessment on their property taxes. This arrangement spreads the cost of a new solar system out across a 20-year payment plan that is easily transferable to the next property owner if the current resident decides to move. The cost of that assessment is typically less than the electricity bill savings generated by the new solar system.

Fast on the heels of Berkeley and Boulder, yesterday the city of Palm Desert opened their doors for applications for the city’s solar and efficiency home improvements program. Literally, opened the door to city hall at 8 a.m. to find over 50 people waiting since 6:30 in the morning.  The $1.25 million set aside for solar loans was all reserved by 8:20 a.m.  Story here: http://www.mydesert.com/article/20090706/NEWS01/90706010/0/OPINION02/Palm-Desert-energy-loans-for-solar-sell-out-in-20-minutes

More on Property-Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing here.