TO: Napa County Climate Action Committee
FROM: David Morrison, Special Projects Director
REPORT BY: Ryan Melendez, Planner II, Sustainability
SUBJECT: Presentation on the 2024 BayREN Programs
RECOMMENDATION
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PRESENTATION: Staff requests that the Climate Action Committee receive a presentation from staff on the Bay Area Regional Energy Network (BayREN) programs.
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BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
The Bay Area Regional Energy Network (BayREN) is a coalition of the nine counties in the San Francisco Bay Area and the Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG)/Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC). Ryan Melendez is the BayREN representative for Napa County and works to implement programs and engage with community members on BayREN program participation. BayREN is administered by ABAG/MTC and receives funding from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to administer, market, and implement electrification, energy efficiency, and related programs. The CPUC categorizes programs into four customer market segments: Equity, Market Support, Cross Cutting, and Evaluation, Measurement, and Verification (EM&V). The ten programs being presented for this meeting will fall into the first three categories. BayREN has secured over $171 million for the next four-year period, and over 60% of that budget will be allocated to enhance equity initiatives for underserved residents and businesses.
The ten programs that BayREN is offering in 2024 are: Single Family, Multifamily, Green Labeling, Commercial, Refrigerant Replacement, Integrated Energy Services, Targeted Decarbonization Services, Codes & Standards, Water Upgrades $ave, and Workforce, Education & Training. While these ten programs serve different customers, the overall goal of BayREN and its programs is to promote energy, water, and greenhouse gas reduction for residential, small business, and local government buildings.
Single Family Home+:
This program aims to serve hard-to-reach or underserved households to promote resilience, health, comfort, safety, affordability, and/or energy savings. The program is currently structured as a rebate program where residents can work with participating contractors to qualify for rebates on home electrification or energy efficiency upgrades such as weatherization (window/attic/crawlspace air sealing), wall and attic insulation, and replacing gas equipment with induction cooking, heat pump HVAC systems, heat pump water heaters, heat pump clothes dryers and more. *Note: the Home+ program serves housing with up to four (4) units.
Green Labeling:
This program oversees the Home Energy Score (HES) offering. A US Department of Energy program that provides residents with insights into their home’s energy usage and energy efficiency potential prior to undertaking home upgrade projects. This Home Energy Score report gives an overall score from 1 to 10 on the current state of a home based on appliances and equipment, windows, air sealing gaps that cause drafts, presence of insulation, and more. The report also provides suggested actions to take to improve the energy use or energy efficiency of a home, which can support the clarity of residents’ decisions on which upgrades to prioritize.
Bay Area Multifamily Building Enhancements (BAMBE):
The BAMBE program seeks to remove obstacles for improving multifamily buildings, promoting energy savings and enhancing residents’ well-being. The program offers no-cost and no-obligation technical assistance for energy and water use analysis, site visits, scope development, and project planning. The program also offers a one-stop-shop for multifamily property owners who fill out an interest and eligibility form. If a property is not eligible for this BayREN program, they will automatically be referred to another, similar program that they can participate in. BAMBE offers generous incentives for property owners to complete upgrades to their multifamily property. A $500 per unit base incentive is available, and additional bonus incentives for properties located in areas with high health, heat, or housing burdens, and those pursuing electrification. *Note: the BAMBE program serves housing that are five (5) or more units.
BayREN Commercial Program:
The BayREN Business program helps upgrade small businesses to reduce energy use and save money, improve air quality, and enhance comfort. Participating program contractors offer no-cost technical assistance in project planning and can help businesses chose the right upgrades for Air Conditioning, Energy Star appliances, LED lighting, Refrigeration Equipment, and Space and Water Heating Equipment. Businesses must meet a minimum number of points from a list of qualifiers to be eligible.
BayREN Refrigerant Replacement (BRRR) Program:
This program is new, and although it is still being developed, the BRRR program aims to target convenience stores, gas stations, restaurants, and other business utilizing refrigerators and freezers to replace their older, less efficient, and higher global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants with more environmentally and climate friendly ones.
Integrated Energy Services (IES):
Still in development, one of two new programs targeted specifically at public agencies, IES offers an energy concierge service with a single point of contact to assist local government staff with identifying the best technical assistance, financing, and incentives options for public facilities projects, and assist with applications and accessing programs. IES also offers an “Energy Roadmapping” service, providing technical and engineering assistance to develop roadmaps for improving public facilities to meet energy goals. The Energy Roadmapping will also provide energy assessments for designated and potential Community Resilience Centers, and technical assistance for energy improvements at these centers. Services for IES are expected to begin in Spring 2024.
Targeted Decarbonization Services (TDS):
The TDS program will offer technical and financial support for selected public facilities projects for a range of building types. Priority will be given to buildings serving equity priority communities. These projects must pilot and demonstrate approaches to building decarbonization and collect and share real-world data on the energy savings and climate impacts. This program will also offer Decarbonization Education and Financing which aims to familiarize local government staff with decarbonization equipment and financing strategies and explore financing alternatives including leveraging alternative funding sources and testing incentives. Services for TDS are expected to begin in Spring 2024.
Codes and Standards (C&S) Program:
The Codes & Standards program assists local governments with energy “reach” code development and implementation and with energy code compliance. The program offers trainings to local government staff to better understand state building, energy, and other code standards. The C&S program offers quarterly forums, which generally provide a deep dive into topics to help local government staff better understand the topics covered and provide support to the public. The program also helps jurisdictions move toward Zero Net Carbon/Zero Carbon goals in their own buildings.
Water Upgrade $aves (WU$) Program:
This program is very different than the other incentive programs that BayREN offers, because it doesn’t offer rebates or incentives for water upgrades. Rather, the program works with municipal water utility companies to directly install water-saving improvements that the customer pays for with the utility rate savings on their water bill. The program allows utilities to invest in and manage customer demand without adding staff or raising capital. Utility companies can improve affordability to customers and reduce risk of nonpayment while providing a tool to customers that does not rely on rebates for upfront costs.
Workforce, Education and Training (WE&T) Program:
The Workforce, Education and Training program is a new-to-BayREN program that brings in a partnership with Rising Sun Center for Opportunity. The program specializes in preparing youth, women, and individuals in reentry for high-road careers and green pathways that offer family-sustaining wages. The Opportunity Build program teaches skills to prepare individuals for careers in the union construction trades. The Climate Careers program operates as a youth empowerment program, addressing climate change by employing youth to provide energy efficiency services to Northern California households. Youth are trained to conduct Green House Calls in their own communities. The Green House Call provides a “home energy kit” equipped with energy and water savings equipment and information about other energy-saving programs for homeowners and renters.
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT
ENVIRONMENTAL DETERMINATION: The proposed action is not a project as defined by 14 California
Code of Regulations 15378 (State CEQA Guidelines) and therefore CEQA is not applicable.