Bill Text: VA SB625 | 2022 | Regular Session | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Low-to-Moderate Income Solar Financial Incentives Fund and Program; financial incentives.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2022-03-08 - Left in Commerce and Energy [SB625 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2022-SB625-Comm_Sub.html
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That §§45.2-1912 through 45.2-1917 of the Code of Virginia are amended and reenacted, as follows:
§45.2-1912. Definitions.
As used in this article, unless the context requires a different meaning:
"Board" means the Clean Energy Advisory Board created pursuant to §45.2-1913.
"Financial incentive" means any grants, loans, rebates, or any other inducement paid out of the Fund.
"Fund" means the Low-to-Moderate Income Solar
Loan and Rebate Financial Incentives Fund created pursuant to §
45.2-1916.
"Program" means the Low-to-Moderate Income Solar
Loan and Rebate Financial Incentives Pilot Program created pursuant
to §45.2-1917.
§45.2-1913. Clean Energy Advisory Board; purpose.
The Clean Energy Advisory Board is established as an advisory
board in the executive branch of state government. The purpose of the Board is
to establish a pilot program for disbursing loans or rebates
financial incentives for the installation of solar energy infrastructure in
low-income and moderate-income households.
§45.2-1914. Membership; terms; quorum; meetings.
A. The Board shall have a total membership of 17 members that
shall consist of 16 nonlegislative citizen members and one ex officio member.
Members may reside within or without outside the Commonwealth.
Nonlegislative citizen members shall be appointed as follows:
1. Six nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the
Speaker of the House of Delegates upon consideration of the recommendations of
the Board of Directors of the Maryland-DC-Delaware-Virginia Solar Energy
Industries Chesapeake Energy Storage and Solar Association (the
MDV-SEIA CHESSA Board) and the Governor's Advisory Council on
Environmental Justice (the Council), one of whom shall be a designee of the
Virginia Housing Development Authority, created pursuant to the provisions of
Chapter 1.2 (§36-55.24 et seq.) of Title 36; one of whom shall be a rooftop
solar energy professional or employer or representative of rooftop solar energy
professionals; one of whom shall be a current or former member of the Council;
one of whom shall be a member or representative of the Virginia, Maryland and
Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives (VMDAEC); one of whom shall be an
expert with experience developing low-income or moderate-income incentive and
loan programs for distributed renewable energy resources; and one of whom shall
be an attorney who is licensed to practice in the Commonwealth and maintains a
legal practice dedicated to rural development, rural electrification, and
energy policy;
2. Three nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the
Senate Committee on Rules upon consideration of the recommendations of the
MDV-SEIA CHESSA Board, one of whom shall be a solar energy
professional or employer or representative of solar energy professionals, one
of whom shall work for or with an investor-owned electric utility company based
in the Commonwealth, and one of whom shall be a member or representative of
VMDAEC; and
3. Seven nonlegislative citizen members to be appointed by the
Governor upon consideration of the recommendations of the MDV-SEIA
CHESSA Board and the Council and subject to confirmation by the General
Assembly, one of whom shall be an attorney who is licensed to practice in the
Commonwealth and maintains a legal practice in renewable energy law and
transactions, one of whom shall be an attorney who is licensed to practice in
the Commonwealth and specializes in tax law and energy transactions, one of
whom shall be an attorney with the Division of Consumer Counsel created
pursuant to the provisions of §2.2-517, one of whom shall be an employee of a
community development financial institution who specializes in impact
investing, one of whom shall be a member of a Virginia environmental
organization, and two of whom shall be designees of the Department of Housing
and Community Development, created pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 8 (§
36-131 et seq.) of Title 36.
B. The Director or his designee shall serve ex officio with voting privileges and shall assist in convening the meetings of the Board.
C. Nonlegislative citizen members of the Board shall be citizens of the Commonwealth. The ex officio member of the Board shall serve a term coincident with his term of office. Nonlegislative citizen members shall be appointed for a term of three years. Appointments to fill vacancies, other than by expiration of a term, shall be for the unexpired terms. Vacancies shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments. All members may be reappointed.
D. The Board shall elect a chairman and vice-chairman from among its membership. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum. The meetings of the Board shall be held at the call of the chairman or whenever the majority of the members so request.
§45.2-1915. Powers and duties of the Board; report.
The Board has the powers and duties to:
1. Advise the Director on the management of the Fund pursuant to the provisions of §45.2-1916;
2. Develop, establish, and operate, with the approval of
the Director, the Program pursuant to the provisions of §45.2-1917;
3. Advise the Director on the possibility of working
with a community development financial institution or other financial
institutions to further the purposes of the Program;
4. 3. Advise the Director on the distribution of
moneys in the Fund in the form of loans or rebates financial incentives
pursuant to the provisions of §45.2-1917; and
5. 4. Submit to the Governor and the General
Assembly an annual report for publication as a report document as provided in
the procedures of the Division of Legislative Automated Systems for the processing
of legislative documents and reports. The chairman shall submit to the Governor
and the General Assembly an annual executive summary of the interim activity
and work of the Board no later than the first day of each regular session of
the General Assembly. The executive summary shall be submitted for publication
as a report document as provided in the procedures of the Division of
Legislative Automated Systems for the processing of legislative documents and
reports and shall be posted on the General Assembly's website.
§45.2-1916. Low-to-Moderate Income Solar Financial Incentives Fund.
There is hereby established in the state treasury a special
nonreverting fund to be known as the Low-to-Moderate Income Solar Loan and
Rebate Financial Incentives Fund. The Fund shall be established on
the books of the Comptroller. All funds appropriated for such purpose and any
gifts, donations, grants, bequests, and other funds received on its behalf
shall be paid into the state treasury and credited to the Fund. Interest earned
on moneys in the Fund shall remain in the Fund and be credited to it. Any
moneys remaining in the Fund, including interest thereon, at the end of each
fiscal year shall not revert to the general fund but shall remain in the Fund.
Moneys in the Fund shall be used solely for the purposes of extending loans
or paying rebates providing financial incentives to electric
customers who complete solar installations or and energy
efficiency improvements pursuant to the provisions of §45.2-1917. Expenditures
and disbursements from the Fund shall be made by the State Treasurer on
warrants issued by the Comptroller upon written request signed by the Director.
§45.2-1917. Low-to-Moderate Income Solar Financial Incentives Pilot Program.
A. The Board, with the approval of the Director, shall develop
and establish a Low-to-Moderate Income Solar Loan and Rebate
Financial Incentives Pilot Program and rules guidelines for
the loan or rebate financial incentive application process. The
Program shall be open to any Virginia resident whose household income is at or
below 80 percent of the state median income or regional median income,
whichever is greater. The Program shall allow only one loan financial
incentive per residence, irrespective of the ownership of the solar energy
system that is installed. Such loan financial incentive shall be
available only for a solar installation or energy efficiency improvements
pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 1.2 (§36-55.24 et seq.) of Title 36.
B. The Board Director shall accept an
application only from the installer of the solar installation or the agent of
the customer.
Each application shall include (i) 12 months of the
customer's utility bills prior to installation of the solar energy system and
an agreement to provide 12 months of utility bills to the Board following the
installation evidence demonstrating that the household has been
weatherized within the past five years by an authorized weatherization
assistance provider or other provider approved by the Department of Housing and
Community Development; (ii) the customer's permission for the Director to
(a) create a customer profile for the customer if he becomes an eligible loan
or rebate customer, (b) aggregate the data provided by such eligible loan or
rebate customers, and (c) use such aggregate data for the purpose of lowering
energy costs and implementing effective programs; (iii) evidence of the
completion of a home performance audit, conducted by a qualified local
weatherization service provider or provider approved by the Department of
Housing and Community Development, before and after installation of energy
efficiency services such as lighting or insulation improvements, attic tents,
weatherization, air sealing of openings in the building envelope, sealing of
ducts, or thermostat upgrades, to demonstrate that such energy efficiency
services were completed and resulted in a reduction in consumption of at
least 12 percent; and (iv) an affidavit attesting to the receipt of a
public benefit at the time the solar energy system is to be installed.
C. The Board Director shall review each
application submitted to it on a first-come, first-served basis and
shall recommend to the Director the approval or denial of each such application
within 30 days of receipt. If the Director approves an application, he
shall hold a reservation of funds for as long as 180 days for final loan or
rebate claim and disbursement program guidelines require.
D. A customer whose application is approved may install an energy system that is interconnected pursuant to the provisions of §56-594 or any section in Title 56 that addresses net energy metering provisions for electric cooperative service territories.
E. All of the work of installing the energy system shall be
completed by a licensed contractor that (i) possesses an Alternative Energy
System (AES) Contracting specialty as defined by the Board for Contractors
pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 11 (§54.1-1100 et seq.) of Title 54.1;
(ii) possesses certification for solar installation from the North American
Board of Certified Energy Practitioners, Solar Energy International, Roof
Integrated Solar Energy, or a similar installer certification program; (iii)
possesses a rating of "A" or higher from the local Better Business
Bureau; and (iv) has installed a minimum of 150 net-metered residential solar
systems in the Commonwealth. If the work of installing the solar energy
system requires electrical work, such work shall be completed by an electrical
contractor licensed by the Department of Professional and Occupational
Regulation. All photovoltaic panels, inverters, and other electrical apparatus
used in the solar energy system shall be tested and certified by a federal
Occupational Safety and Health Administration Nationally Recognized Testing
Laboratory such as UL LLC and installed in compliance with manufacturer
specifications and all applicable building and electrical codes.
F. The customer or the installer, acting on behalf of the
customer, shall submit any loan or rebate claim within 90 days of completion
of the installation of the solar energy system, with completion deemed to have
occurred once the solar energy system's bi-directional meter or net meter, or
the respective utility's revenue grade meter, has been installed and the system
has been electrified. Each rebate claim shall include, at a minimum, a
date of system electrification and a time-stamped and date-stamped verification
of (i) bi-directional net meter delivery or (ii) the operation of a compatible
programmed smart meter capable of tracking net metering activity.
G. The Director shall review and approve or deny a loan or
rebate claim within 60 days of receipt and shall provide a written
explanation of each denial to the respective claimant. The Director shall
disburse from the Fund created pursuant to §45.2-1916 the loan or rebate
financial incentive for each approved claim within 60 days of its receipt
of the claim and according to the order in which its respective application was
approved. Any rebate or grant financial incentive shall be in the
amount of no more than $2 per DC watt for up to six kilowatts of
solar capacity installed a maximum of $12,000. The customer may use
a rebate in addition to any federal tax credits or state incentives or
enhancements earned for the same solar installation.
