Finding Funding Opportunities

I get a lot of questions about how to find grant opportunities and RFPs (Request for Proposals), and so I decided it’s about time I share some resources!

There are a number of places to look for funding opportunities. Here are some of my favorites:

California’s Local Government Energy Efficiency Portal

This portal is a great service provided by the Statewide Local Government Energy Efficiency Best Practices Coordinator. They shares resources, best practices, news and events and other information with those involved with Local Government Partnerships. You can sign up to get the weekly email, which we share on this blog each week. This email often includes a list of funding opportunities for eligible local and tribal governments. The portal also includes a detailed summary of funding opportunity resources for local governments that may be found here.

California Energy Commission (CEC)

It's always great to get money for what you want to grow. Photo source: Terrain Magazine

The CEC funds a variety of projects and types of agencies. Current solicitations can be found here and are searchable based on program areas. I recommend subscribing to the list serve so you are up to date with contract notices as they’re released.

The CEC also funds “energy innovation” projects through the EPIC (Electricity Program Investment Charge) Program. These projects address environmental impacts and usually include program design, research and development, technology deployment, and market facilitation. Current solicitations include vehicle-grid integration, biomass-to-energy systems for food waste sector, and developing ZNE (zero net energy) buildings.

Grants.gov

All federal grants are submitted through this website. Unfortunately, solicitations and RFPs are a little hard to find through their system, but you can sign up for email notifications regarding new funding opportunities. The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) has a much easier advanced search system. If you find something in CFDA, you can more easily search for the specific grant solicitation on grants.gov to apply.

FDO Professional

FDO Professional allows you to search foundations that fund your industry in your area. This service is fee based, but you can access it for free from “Funding Information Network locations” in your area; just bring a flash drive for any information or lists of foundations you want to download. Many libraries, including Fresno County Public Library, Stanislaus County Library and Tulare Public Library are “Funding Information Network locations”. Check them out!

Do you have other resources to share? What’s your favorite?

Statewide LG EE Best Practices: Weekly Update

Here are your wEEkly updates:

News and Opportunities

City of Carlsbad Climate Action Plan Update
The City of Carlsbad's newly appointed Climate Action Plan administrator gave an update at a City Council meeting about the city's current and planned efforts.

Sonoma County to Offer Incentives to Drivers to Switch to Electric Cars
Backed by the County Board of Supervisors, several programs are underway that county officials hope will boost the number of electric vehicles on the road, and develop the public and private charging network to support them.

Low-Income Weatherization Program Guidelines
The Department of Community Services and Development (CSD) is seeking comments on the Draft Low-Income Weatherization Program Guidelines for the FY 2015-16 Appropriation Procurements for the Single-Family Energy Efficiency and Solar PV Program. CSD is hosting a public hearing on Friday, October 7th 2016 at 9:00 AM in Sacramento. A copy of the draft will be made available online prior to the hearing. Written comments are due Thursday, October 20th.

DOE First Step Towards Developing Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency on Tribal Lands
The Department of Energy is making $3 million in funding available to support tribal energy development in six topic areas: 1) conduct energy options analyses, 2) establish baseline energy use and energy efficiency options, 3) develop energy organizations, 4) conduct climate resiliency planning, 5) establish policy, regulations, and codes to reduce energy use and promote energy development, and 6) obtain skills and training related to energy use and development.

Calendar

9/27-9/29 (webinars) Series of Energy Star Webinars
Several webinars are being hosted next ween on Energy Star, including: An Energy Star Success Story: Boston Properties and EnerNOC; Portfolio Manager 101, 201, and 301; and Ask The Expert.

9/29 (webinar) Distributed Energy Resources: Seizing Opportunities While Managing Distribution Grid Impacts
Distributed energy resources (DERs) are reshaping the operation of the electric power system. Join this webinar to learn about how we can coordinate DERs with centralized generation, in economically sustainable ways, to drive savings and enhance efficiency - to the mutual benefit of all entities involved.

12/1 (Sacramento) 2016 EPIC Symposium

Save the date! The California Energy Commission, in partnership with PG&E, Edison and SDG&E, is hosting a symposium to feature innovative research projects helping California achieve its clean energy future.

Resources and Reports

Green Region Initiative V2.0 - Sustainability Indicators Map
The Green Region Initiative map serves as a resource for jurisdictions to identify current and potential progress areas, replicate best practices, and collaborate to increase sustainability in the SCAG region. The map presents policy and program data for all cities and counties in the region across 25 sustainability topics including climate action planning, greenhouse gas emissions reduction, green infrastructure, waste reduction, water conservation, and active transportation. Please direct any questions to scaggreenregion@scag.ca.gov.

Energy Efficiency Finance: A Market Reassessment
With the growth and maturation of the energy efficiency finance markets, there are new opportunities and trends that are likely to remain relevant for some time. Among them are the rise of green bonds and interest from new types of investors, a focus on the customer experience, new methods for financing programs, and better integration of efficiency into capital planning.

2016 Energy and Sustainability Predictions: Findings from Facilities Professionals
This report, derived from Ecova's 2016 survey, offers specific insight into how facilities managers are "prioritizing energy, water, and waste efficiency initiatives in light of the forces at work in today's market".

The Emerging Clean Energy Economy: Customer-Driven. Modernized. Reliable. (Southern California Edison)
New white paper released from Southern California Edison indicates that with a modern grid in place, SCE will be capable of delivering a full spectrum of distributed energy resources to customers within a decade.

2016 CALGreen Residential Measures: Changes and Opportunities

If you missed BayREN's latest regional forum, fear not as all resources and recordings are available online. Resources from their other regional forums are also available on this webpage and many topics will likely spark your interest.

Future Electric Utility Regulation Series
A new series of reports from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory taps leading thinkers to grapple with complex regulatory issues for electricity. 

That's all for this week!

Statewide LG EE Best Practices: Weekly Update

Here are your wEEkly updates:

1. Save the Date: the Capital Region’s Climate Readiness Collaborative will hold its Quarterly Meeting June 21^st, and will feature work around developing resilient communities, including a project pursuing Living Building Certification and Zero Net Energy affordable housing.

2. EDAC Survey to Local Governments: There is a special opportunity to take part in a short local government survey (released this week) to help the Energy Data Access Committee better understand how current energy data rules align with the needs of local governments in their development of greenhouse gas inventories and climate action plans.

3. Need weatherization funds? I’ve been getting a number of questions regarding weatherization funding, so I checked in with a representative on weatherization funding opportunities at California’s Department of Community Services and Development (CSD) – who shared information on three weatherization programs CSD administers to provide California with EE and solar funds – and how local governments can get involved.

4. EE and roofs: while on the topic of building envelope, a range of resources to make roofs more energy efficient (including air barriers, matching roof color to climate, and green roofs) is covered by Energy Manager here.

5. Showcasing innovation: The California Energy Commission (CEC) has launched a new Energy Innovation Showcase website to communicate and track progress on innovative projects awarded funding under the CEC’s EPIC program – with information on microgrids, innovative EE, and more.

6. Open EPIC solicitations: pre-application questions and answers are now posted for those interested in applying to the Los Angeles Regional Innovation Energy Cluster grant funding opportunity. (Or click here for more on funding.)

7. Using energy data and EMS to save: energy management systems allow for better building control, avoiding wasted energy, money, and improving building comfort. Learn what commercial real estate and municipal leads are doing to save.

8. Congratulations to the City of Oakland: Oakland was the first to use ACEEE’s new self-reporting tool to share EE policies and programs at the local level, and was found to be a top scorer nationwide.

9. EE residential savings as a financial commodity? Learn about a new method for motivating and financing residential energy efficiency upgrades that has earned a $5 million investment from the New York Green Bank.

10. Hotel EE and water management: Are hotels part of your community's energy footprint? Learn what motivates hotels on energy and water savings in a hotel survey covered by Environmental Leader.

11. EE and cost savings through VRF: Learn more about how a school is finding energy and cost savings through an HVAC upgrade to variable refrigerant flow here.

12. Advanced Energy Jobs: AEE reviews the U.S. DOE’s recent Energy and Employment Report using an energy index, and finds 2.7 million employed in advanced energy nationwide, and more.

13. New incentives for generation? A new Proposed Decision revising the Self Generation Incentive Program was released by the CPUC this week. See the major changes and get a link to the full Proposed Decision.

14. Solar+storage for multi-family: a new report reviews the economics of adding solar to storage in California’s affordable multi-family housing – and makes some interesting discoveries (which will be covered in a June 15^th webinar).

15. TDV Workshop Presentations: Those working toward zero net energy (ZNE) may be interested in reviewing the Time Dependent Value (TDV) of energy presentations now available from the California Energy Commission (CEC)’s May 12th workshop, now available.

16. Funding deadline: for those submitting to the Healthy Cities and Counties Challenge, a reminder that the deadline is May 31^st.

17. Benchmarking in the news: San Francisco, Los Angeles, and others make the news this week for energy benchmarking.

18. The latest in all-electric buses: new battery technology is changing the equation for deployment of electric buses. Learn how, and who’s moving on electric buses.

19. SDG&E EV Pilot: for more on electric vehicles, SDG&E has kicked off its $52.5 million electric vehicle pilot. Read more in the San Diego Union Tribune.

20. Who’s Coolest in Residential EE: Highlights from the Cool California Awards for top participating cities are now available! Miss which cities won Coolest Cities of 2016? Take a look at Energy Upgrade California’s April press release.

21. Job announcement: California’s Air Resources Board is hiring! Learn more about their open Air Pollution Specialist position.

22. Job announcement: the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission is hiring! Learn more about their open Public Relations Assistant position.

As always, you can keep track of relevant events by connecting to the EE Events Calendar, and find more resources being added daily on the EECoordinator website – including past WEEkly Updates.

That’s all for this week!