Resource Library

Structural PE exemption for qualifying roof mounted systems

The CSCDA California Lease Finance Program (“CaLease”) allows local agencies to finance equipment and real estate. The program has been established using a Master Lease Agreement with each respective local agency to provide for efficient subsequent purchases in the future. CaLease provides local agencies with access to multiple funding institutions who competitively bid on their project. This comprehensive lease management program allows local government the ability to bid and manage leases without dedicating significant staff time to the process.

This Guide is designed to help organizations join the rapidly growing number of school districts, businesses, and government institutions that now use solar electricity. This resource discusses the benefits of solar and power purchase agreements, technical and financial considerations, and case studies.

The Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency (DSIRE) website contains a comprehensive listing of incentives and rebates for geothermal heat pumps, organized by state. Each entry contains information about the incentive in question as well as external links to the program.

The Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency (DSIRE) website contains a comprehensive listing of incentives and rebates for lighting as well as lighting sensors and controls (see search function), organized by state. Each entry contains information about the incentive in question as well as external links.

DSIRE is the most comprehensive source of information on incentives and policies that support renewable energy and energy efficiency in the United States. Established in 1995, DSIRE is operated by the N.C. Clean Energy Technology Center at N.C. State University and is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. DSIRE includes a number of resources for developers, policymakers, researchers, and the general public. In additional to information on incentives and policies, the DSIRE database contains a multitude of publications and presentations prepared by DSIRE staff, detailed summary maps, and other energy-related resources maintained by the federal government.

The Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency (DSIRE) website provides comprehensive information on state, local, utility, and federal incentives and policies that support renewables and energy efficiency in the United States. Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy's Solar Energy Technologies Program, DSIRE Solar provides information to consumers, policy makers, businesses, utilities, researchers and other stakeholders. AHJs can utilize DSIRE to locate relevant rebates and incentives to publicize to their communities.

Policies and programs that address customer end uses of energy are critical for achieving greater energy efficiency within the electric and natural gas utility sectors. The policies that underpin these programs include utility regulation and legislation that guides state efforts to advance energy efficiency, such as Energy Efficiency Resource Standard (EERS) that requires utilities to annually save a certain percentage of energy over a multi-year period. The ACEEE Utility database pages primarily address the electric sector as it has historically been the main focus in most states for program funding and initiatives.

Building owners and building managers, who are Con Edison electric customers and third party developers acting on behalf of the building owners and building managers are eligible for the enhanced incentives based on their demand reduction for energy efficiency and demand management projects that are completed prior to June 1, 2016. Types of projects that are eligible for the increased incentives include thermal storage and battery storage.

Under the Energy Wise Rewards demand response program for Maryland customers, Pepco will install a web-programmable thermostat or outdoor switch at a residence and cycle it during peak-use times in exchange for bill credits. During the "peak demand" times of summer, Energy Wise Rewards works to reduce electricity usage by "cycling" central air conditioners or heat pumps throughout the region, managing energy use, and reducing the need for costly, new electrical infrastructure. More information about the program can be found on the Pepco website. The attached presentation details Pepco's best practices for recruitment into its program.

San Diego Gas & Electric's demand response overview on its website provides information about demand response incentive programs for commercial customers, including capacity bidding, technology incentives, permanent load shifting, and more. It also contains energy saving tips, organized by commercial segment.

Pacific Gas & Electric's Demand Response programs offer incentives to businesses who reduce the energy use of their facilities during times of peak demand. Their range of available incentive programs include peak day pricing; technological incentives for automated demand response technologies and permanent load shifting; a base interruptible program that pays an incentive to reduce a facility's load to a pre-selected level; and more. Detailed information about each incentive program, including eligibility and how to enroll, can be found on PG&E's website.

The potential for utilizing building thermal mass for load shifting and peak demand reduction has been demonstrated in a number of simulation, laboratory, and field studies. This Lawrence Berkeley National Lab project studied the potential of pre-cooling and demand limiting in a heavy mass and a light mass building in the Bay Areaof California, and produced results that suggest that pre-cooling has the potential to improve the demand responsiveness of commercial buildings while maintaining acceptable comfort conditions. A case study, as well as an expanded paper on the project and its methods, is attached below.

The goal of this manual is to provide a practical, step by step guide to assist municipal utilities in planning and carrying out demand-side management activities. It divides the demand-side planning and implementation process into four straightforward objectives: determine how customers use electricity, determine the value of demand-side resources to the utility, identify the most promising programs, and select, design and implement programs. Each objective ends with a list of resources that can provide further information and guidance.

In 2012, the Denver Housing Authority established a public-private partnership to bring solar energy to 387 affordable housing buildings throughout the city. This landmark public-private partnership, a Solar Power Purchase Agreement, made DHA one of the first housing authorities in the Rocky Mountain region to successfully implement such a complex, large-scale residential solar electric project. The project involves the installation of solar power systems on more than 650 housing units owned and managed by DHA and will provide 2.5 MW of capacity. Its innovative financing structure allows DHA to buy long-term power from renewable energy sources and required no capital outlay by DHA.

This comprehensive guide prepared by the Department of Energy and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory offers a detailed overview of the energy auditing process, from funding, site assessments and data analysis, and the RFQ and RFP process for identified energy upgrades.

A DOE Zero Energy Ready Home is a high performance home which is so energy efficient, that a renewable energy system can offset all or most of its annual energy consumption. Since 2008, the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Builders Challenge program has recognized hundreds of leading builders for their achievements in energy efficiency, resulting in over 14,000 Zero Energy Ready homes and millions of dollars in energy savings.

Through a critical analysis of select North American buildings and interviews with building professionals in northern Europe and North America, this report identifies both simple and advanced facade technologies that enable the development of commercial buildings that minimize the need for HVAC and lighting energy use, while enhancing occupant well-being. Challenges and lessons learned from detailed North American case study buildings are discussed in the hope that these can serve as a guide for the successful implementation and accelerate the adoption of advanced facade design solutions in the U.S. building stock.

This resource is designed for higher education institutions that are interested in offering a solar energy education course. This report explores the process of developing a quality course or unit of instruction and the models and practices that can be used for solar education or other purposes.

Comparison of dispute resolution standards around interconnection

To help electric co-ops address the legal, economic and technical issues raised by consumer-owned generation, NRECA and CFC have created this DG toolkit. These materials provide models and guidance that each co-op can adapt to its unique needs after consultation with management, legal counsel and system engineers. With this toolkit, each co-op should be able to draft the rules, policies, tariffs, contract documents and retail rates required to respond to member requests for interconnection. PDFs can be found at the link below.

Increasing demand for electric vehicle (EV) charging provides an opportunity for market expansion of distributed solar technology. A major barrier to the current deployment of solar technology for EV charging is a lack of clear information for policymakers, utilities,and potential adopters. This brief paper introduces the pros and cons of EV charging during the day versus at night, summarizes the benefits and grid implications of combining solar and EV charging technologies, and offers some regulatory and policy options available to policymakers and regulators wanting to incentivize solar EV charging.

Cities account for over 70% of global energy use and 40 to 50% of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide. Half of cities’ energy consumption is for heating and cooling. Any solution for the climate and energy transition must explicitly address sustainable urban heating and cooling, as well as electricity. This summary discusses the potential for modern district energy systems to reduce emissions and primary energy demand within cities in a cost effective manner. Modern climate-resilient and low-carbon district energy systems combine district heating and cooling with combined heat and power (CHP), thermal storage, heat pumps and/or decentralized energy.

The Ask an Expert section of the DOE's SunShot Initiative Solar Resource Center allows users to pose a range of technical and policy questions to solar experts.

The California Energy Commission is in a process of evaluating policies to overcome barriers to the use of geothermal heat pump technologies and set out standards for their use in consultation with the California Public Utilities Commissions, local governments, and other stakeholders. This draft policy from the working group contains initial proposed policies governing their use and installation.