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President Obama Proposes Home Energy Retrofit Program for Job Creation
President Barack Obama proposed a new rebate program on Tuesday to reward homeowners for making their homes more energy efficient, while also proposing additional federal investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy. As part of a speech about jobs and the economy at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., the president noted that home energy retrofits create jobs, save money for families, and reduce the pollution that threatens our environment.
President Obama also called for aid to small businesses and new investments in infrastructure. Most of the president’s proposals will require congressional approval.
President Obama’s job plan calls for an expansion of select American Recovery and Reinvestment Act initiatives that promote energy efficiency and clean energy jobs. The president noted that one-third of the Recovery Act is intended for investments “to put Americans to work doing the work that America needs done,” such as doubling the U.S. capacity for producing power from renewable energy. But most of those initiatives are oversubscribed, causing many strong ideas to go unfunded. With that in mind, the Obama Administration is supporting the expansion of programs for which additional federal dollars will leverage private investment and create jobs quickly, such as investments in industrial energy efficiency, as well as new or extended tax incentives for investing in U.S. manufacturing facilities for renewable energy technologies.
California pushes renewables and energy efficiency
California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger recently turned up the heat on utilities, pushing them further toward renewable energy. He signed an executive order requiring the state’s utilities to get a third of their electricity from renewable energy sources by 2020. The state currently has a 20 percent renewable power requirement by 2010 for investor-owned utilities only, but the new executive order extends and increases that mandate to include public power utilities and other electricity providers as well.
In a complementary move, the state also expanded its “feed-in tariff” that directs large utilities to pay their customers for the power they produce and “feed in” to the grid. The utilities are required to purchase the customer-produced power at standard rates or “tariffs” that are adjusted to account for the time when the power is produced. Power produced during times of peak demand earns the highest rate. The new law also doubles the maximum system size from the current 1.5 megawatts to 3 megawatts and requires long-term agreements that will be in effect for 10 to 20 years. The law also increases the statewide cap for such feed-in tariff agreements to 750 megawatts, up from 500 megawatts.
County using the green to create green buildings
Sonoma County’s Energy Independence Program (SCEIP) is a new opportunity for property owners to finance energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements through a voluntary assessment. The program has over 75 million to lend out and currently 14 million has been applied for – consider this great opportunity to use this available capital to make some eco-smart & energy-wise improvements to your property.
Program Specifics:
1.Participation in this Sonoma County program is completely voluntary.
2.Energy efficiency, water conservation and renewable energy generation upgrades must be permanently attached to the property to qualify. Items not permanently attached such as dishwashers and other appliances are not allowed. Improvements like adding insulation, rainwater harvesting, passive solar design improvements for winter heat gain, living roofs for passive cooling, ultra-efficient heat pumps or geo-thermal systems, waterless urinals, solar electrical panels, solar hot water and energy efficient windows are all acceptable.
3.Improvements must be made on existing properties and buildings. New construction does not qualify.
4.Assessments are a lien on the property itself: when the property is sold, the assessment stays with the property.
5.These assessments will be attached to the property, not the owner. Repayment is made through your property tax bill over time. The time period depends on the amount of the loan.
Participating in the Sonoma County Energy Independence Program is easy. The county will even pay for SYMBIOS to conduct a energy viability study (or assessment) to determine the best green technologies to employ for your given property.
To learn more about the county program visit their web site www.sonomacountyenergy.org or fill out the county application
For further assistance, Call SYMBIOS!
Hot incentives with tax credits - An extension and expansion of the Federal Income Tax Credit (ITC) for Renewable Energy was signed into law on October 3rd, 2008.
This is great news for property owners interested in energy independence and new green technologies. You can now reap the rewards of a full 30% tax credit, effective 2009. Combined with the California rebate, residential customers can now expect a savings of up to 40% for many ‘green energy’ systems.
Contact SYMBIOS to assess your property and develop an integrated energy plan that provides you with the optimal performance for your investment.
The Green Living Section of Sonoma County’s local newspaper, the Press Democrat, features an article entitled, “Savings from a Rainy Day.” and discusses the benefits of catching rainwater off your roof.