• Best Practices for Utility Ownership

    Solar power is a cost-competitive, mainstream renewable energy resource that should be available to everyone, regardless of their income level or housing type. Yet America’s nearly 50 million low-income households, who spend more on their energy needs as a percentage of income than their wealthier peers, are often unable... [read more]
  • Community Shared Solar

    Shared solar programs – sometimes known as ‘community solar’ or ‘solar gardens’ – help address the physical barriers of going solar for those who do not own their home or a suitable roof. These programs allow any energy customer to subscribe or otherwise participate in a solar energy project... [read more]
  • Consumer Protection

    Consumer protections should be at the forefront of low-income solar programs, especially if they include customer finance. Key protections include... [read more]
  • Enabling Long-term Funding

    Guiding principles: Accessibility and Affordability, Sustainability and Flexibility, Consumer Protection Barriers addressed: Cost, Market Forces Low-income access to solar is scalable when long-term funding is allocated through statute and/or regulations, often as part of a broader program, allowing the market to develop sustainably over time. Typically, successful and scalable... [read more]
  • Enabling Statute Examples

    Guiding principles: Accessibility and Affordability, Compatibility and Integration, Sustainability and Flexibility, Consumer Protection Barriers addressed: Cost, Physical Barriers and Home Ownership Status, Market Forces Successful low-income solar policies and programs across the country (e.g. CA, CO, CT, DC) to date have a few things in common: They are long-term... [read more]
  • Federal Energy Assistance Programs

    Guiding principles: Accessibility, Community Engagement, Compatibility and Integration Barriers addressed: Cost, Compatibility and Integration, Market Forces Nationwide, in the past five years federal energy assistance funding under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Weatherization... [read more]
  • Federal Partnerships/Best Practices Sharing

    Dedicated funding from federal sources for low-income solar programs has been largely absent, but a few partnerships have formed to ensure best practices sharing between jurisdictions looking to or in the process of implementing low-income solar programs.... [read more]