Peninsula Clean Energy launches upgrade program in San Mateo County

The Home Upgrade Program, announced Sept. 28, helps single-family homeowners repair and upgrade infrastructure that uses methane gas or propane for heating or cooking and who couldn’t afford to otherwise. Peninsula Clean Energy is funding the program to decrease carbon emissions and ensure everyone benefits. PCE is an electricity provider for San Mateo County established in 2016 to provide electricity. A Community Choice Aggregation organization, it purchases and generates electricity for residents and businesses.

Upgrades available under the program include window and door repair and replacement, stairs and hand railing repairs, replacing old carpet with flooring, removing mold and asbestos, and installing electric appliances like heat pump water heaters and dryers, according to PCE.

To qualify, residents must live in San Mateo County, own and live in a single-family home, duplex, triplex or fourplex, use gas or propane appliances to heat their home, heat water or cook and meet household income requirements, PCE said. People can reach income requirements by participating in another eligible income-qualified program or meeting total combined household income. A household of one would be eligible if the maximum household income is $102,450, two $117,100, and four $146,350. The program is only available to homeowners and is not available for renters.

Richard Heath and Associates and El Concilio will administer the Home Upgrade Program. Following a pre-application process, there would be a qualifying appointment, energy home assessment and installation. The project will take approximately two to three months from enrollment to completion, with variability based on circumstances.

The Home Upgrade Program will allow PCE to upgrade up to 200 homes over two years. PCE expects each home improvement to cost around $6,500. According to a March PCE report, the budget for 2 1/2 years for all aspects of the program would be $2 million. If the program is successful, the board could approve more funding if available, Alejandra Posada said, an associate programs manager at Peninsula Clean Energy.

PCE hopes that appliance upgrades will be cheaper than other rebate programs that rely on market rates for appliances, such as water heaters. Posada noted since this is a new program, PCE did not have specific data on how much all the improvements offered under this program would cost. PCE will use the first 20 homes to calculate additional program structures moving forward like cost data, contract work and standardizing the process. Posada said while $6,500 is the expected average PCE spends, some home improvements may be more, while others may be less.

“It really will depend on what the assessment says and what things our budget could allow in that specific home and according to the customer’s needs and preferences as well,” Posada said.

Anything over $13,000 would have to be considered on an individual basis, working with partners to determine what is feasible. Posada said PCE did not have the funds to pay for all 200 homes at $13,000. She noted PCE did not want to set the expectation for each home at $13,000, given it would be too much for 200 homes.

“Probably, anything up to $13,000 we would do. If it is going to exceed $13,000, that would be a point of discussion, and we would take it case by case,” Posada said.

PCE will also try and leverage funding from other existing programs to complement funding. PCE announced in March that San Mateo County residents who replace their methane gas water heaters with electric water heaters could receive at least $2,500 in rebates.

“Where there are other incentives available through other programs, we would be sure to leverage those; $6,500 is just our budget alone. There would be funding coming from other places,” Posada said.

People can go to peninsulacleanenergy.com/home-upgrade-program/ for more information. They can also email PCE-HomeUpgrade@rhainc.com or call (650) 449-6525.

curtis@smdailyjournal.com

(650) 344-5200 ext. 102