Assembly Bill 1470: The Solar Water Heating and Efficiency Act of 2007
On October 12, 2007, Governor Schwarzenegger signed Assembly Bill (AB) 1470 (Huffman, 2007) creating the Solar Water Heating and Efficiency Act of 2007. The new law authorizes the California Public Utilities Commission to develop a statewide Solar Hot Water incentive program funded by gas ratepayers, pending the outcome of a pilot program that the CPUC is currently running in San Diego. The new law gives the CPUC authority to create a $250 million program with the goal to install 200,000 solar water heating systems throughout California. The law specifically points to the San Diego Solar Water Heating Pilot as a source of data to inform the design of the new program.
Results of San Diego Pilot Will Lead to Informed Program Design
The San Diego Solar Water Heating Pilot Program (SWH Pilot Program) was created as part of the California Solar Initiative to provide insights into the dynamics of the solar water heating market and to assess whether or not a statewide program was warranted. AB 1470 stipulates that data about the cost-effectiveness and ratepayer benefits of solar water heating technologies will be taken from the SHW Pilot Program’s evaluation, and used to assess next steps for the AB 1470 statewide program.
The SHW Pilot Program, which is now being administered by the California Center for Sustainable Energy (CCSE), has an incentive budget of $1.5 million, offers incentives for solar water heating systems, and has an installation target of 750 residential systems and 30-50 commercial systems. The SHW Pilot Program also has a metering component that focuses on robust performance metering of a subset of participating systems. The goal is to get useful information about the potential electric and natural gas usage reductions associated with solar water heating technologies. CCSE is working with a program evaluation contractor to assess the effectiveness of the Pilot.
There was a proposal to extend the duration of the SWH Pilot Program, and to expand the SWH Pilot Program to the entire state. The Commission has issued a Proposed Decision on May 21, 2008 that rejects the request to expand the SWH Pilot Program statewide because of legislative constraints, but allows the SWH Pilot Program to be extended through December 31, 2009, or until the SWH Pilot Program budget is depleted.
Implementation of AB 1470 is now being handled in a new Rulemaking which states that the Commission plans to evaluate the SWH Pilot Program in the first half of 2009. After the SWH Pilot Program’s conclusion, the CPUC will conduct a public process to determine the next steps, including whether to implement the program authorized by AB 1470, which would occur in the latter half of 2009 if deemed warranted.
Getting Involved
Consumers with today’s energy efficient solar water heating systems are leading the way towards a greener energy future in California. If you are a SDG&E electric customer seeking to retrofit your current water heating system, contact the California Center for Sustainable Energy for an informational packet and list of registered installers. Eligible Contractors must qualify and be listed with CCSE to provide systems under the Pilot program. For more information, consult the SWH Pilot Program Handbook available from the CCSE's SWH Pilot Program web page.