Residential Solar Programs
Energy for All
Program Administrator
- Energy for All is a program of GRID Alternatives, a community-based nonprofit organization that connects families with state and local government programs and other resources that help them save money.
Description
- The Energy for All Program helps low-income households, multifamily housing providers and utility partners across the country reduce electricity costs and generate community wealth with clean, renewable solar energy.
Eligibility:
- To see if you qualify, please visit EnergyForAllProgram.org/news or call (213) 213-5899. Plus, under Share the Savings, refer a friend or a family member and, if they use the program, you can receive a $200 referral fee.
Energy For All in Paramount:
- The City of Paramount and its partnership with GRID Alternatives were recently featured on KCET’s “Earth Focus” television series. GRID Alternatives is a non-profit organization that provides free home solar installations to income-qualifying residents. To date, eight Paramount families have gained solar panels for their homes through the GRID Alternatives Program.
- Watch the video below (the Paramount portion begins at 14:12)
Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH)
Program Administrator:
- Funded by the California Public Utilities Commission, administered by an administration team comprised of the Association for Energy Affordability (AEA), the Center for Sustainable Energy (CSE), and GRID Alternatives (GRID).
- This nonprofit team and its subcontractors, including the California Housing Partnership Corporation (CHPC), Rising Sun Energy Center and rotating community-based organizations, is referred to as the SOMAH Program Administrators (SOMAH PA).
Description:
- The Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH) program provides financial incentives for installing photovoltaic (PV) energy systems on multifamily affordable housing. The program will deliver clean power and credits on energy bills to California’s affordable housing residents.
- Program Handbook
- Technical Assistance
Eligibility:
- To be eligible for a SOMAH incentive, a property must:
- Have at least five units
- Be deed-restricted low-income residential housing (special considerations for HUD and USDA properties)
- Satisfy one of the following:
- Eighty percent of property residents have incomes at or below 60 percent of the area median income (AMI)
- Property is located in a defined disadvantaged community (DAC) that scores in the top 25 percent of census tracts statewide in the CalEnviroScreen 3.0
- Be an existing building or retrofit (new construction properties may receive upfront technical assistance but must have their certificate of occupancy before submitting a reservation request)
- Have separately metered units
- Be a utility or community choice aggregator customer in the Pacific Gas and Electric, Southern California Edison, San Diego Gas & Electric, PacifiCorp or Liberty Utilities territories
Check out the Eligible SOMAH Property Map.
Apply:
- Applying for SOMAH incentive funding requires specific documentation throughout the planning and installation process
- Applications are only accepted online via the application portal, PowerClerk—which tracks your project’s progress, keeps your paperwork organized in a single location and allows SOMAH to provide accurate statistics on the program’s performance.
