Berkeley lawmakers OK home solar power plan
Nov 8 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Kristin Bender The Oakland
Tribune, Calif.
Getting energy-saving solar panels on your house or business without going
broke is set to get a lot easier in Berkeley.
Lawmakers unanimously approved a first-of-its kind program Tuesday night to
help property owners install solar energy systems by tacking the cost on to
their property tax bills over a 20-year period.
"This program has the potential to once again be a leader in the nation,"
said Stephen Compagni Portis, director of special projects at the University
of California, Berkeley's Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory, which
does analysis and research in renewable energy. "It's a model that is simple
and yet really powerful in terms of allowing cities across the country to
build a base of solar power."
There are still details to work out, but the new plan is a giant step
forward in meeting the city's lofty goal of reducing greenhouse gas
emissions by 80 percent by 2050, said Cisco DeVries, Mayor Tom Bates' chief
of staff.
DeVries developed the idea and crafted the plan after more than 80 percent
of voters last November approved Measure G, making Berkeley the first city
in the nation to ask every man, woman and child who lives or works in
Berkeley to do their part to reduce their carbon footprint.
The city later this month will release the Climate Action Plan giving
residents and business people other ideas on how to reduce emissions. The
solar plan is a significant part of that plan.
"(The solar plan) provides
the financing tools to help people meet their obligations. Everyone is
looking for new ways to get property owners to get to work on reducing their
emissions and this provides an incentive," DeVries said.
With a unanimous vote Tuesday, the city approved the concept and framework
of the Solar Financing Initiative, giving preliminary approval to the
project.
Technical, financial and legal details are expected to be worked out for the
Council's final approval by early summer, DeVries said.
"With the enactment of this initiative, Berkeley is not only providing
residents and businesses with greater access to clean, emissions-free solar
power, they are also providing a tremendous boon to local and regional solar
installers and contractors, helping grow the local economy and tax base,"
said Ron Kenedi, vice president of Sharp Solar, a California-based solar
panel production company.
Berkeley would pay all the up-front costs of installing solar systems by
borrowing a lump sum of money from banks or other financial institutions.
It is currently considering the advantages and disadvantages of five
financing plans, DeVries said. When a home or business is sold, the property
tax assessment is passed on to the new owner.
If all goes as planned, a property owner's yearly tax payment would be about
equal to what a person would otherwise pay annually in electric bills -- but
with no up-front money down, city leaders said.
A solar energy system on a 1,500-square-foot home using roughly $140 worth
of electricity monthly would cost about $20,000. However, people are
sometimes reluctant to take such a loan for something that isn't absolutely
necessary, city leaders and experts said.
"This is a loan that is much more accessible," said Dan Kammen, director of
UC Berkeley's Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory.
"I think the mayor's assessment is right, that if the up-front cost goes
away, we're going to see a huge wave of solar energy and efficiency
projects."
Property owners will be charged interest, but DeVries said the rates will
likely be lower than what a bank would charge.
There are about 400 solar systems homes and businesses in Berkeley now,
according to city records. But that number could climb into the thousands
over the next decade under the program, said Bates. If the flood of calls
and e-mails to city leaders is an indication, interest is widespread.
"This proposal has generated more interest from around the country and world
than any other policy that the city has worked on since I've been here (in
five years)," DeVries said.
City leaders have had queries about the framework of the program from Hawaii
to Massachusetts as well as from Europe and Asia.
"I am not longer able to respond to the e-mails and calls I am receiving and
I feel bad about that," DeVries said. "Our energy program officer came to me
saying he has dozens of e-mails and phone calls he can't respond to either.
There is a lot of interest."
MediaNews staff writer Doug Oakley contributed to this report. |