San Diego Community Power opens second Solar Advantage solicitation for disadvantaged‑community solar

San Diego Community Power launched its second solicitation for the Solar Advantage program — the local brand for the California Public Utilities Commission’s Disadvantaged Communities Green Tariff (DAC‑GT) — on April 7 and invited developers to submit offers through an online portal by Sept. 8, 2025, 5 p.m. Pacific, the agency said during a bidder webinar.

"San Diego Community Power is a not for profit public agency formed in 2019," said Tessa Tobar, subject matter expert for the Solar Advantage program at San Diego Community Power. Tobar told webinar attendees the agency purchases renewable energy on behalf of member communities and does not own or operate the distribution grid, which remains the responsibility of San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E).

The solicitation seeks projects that will serve residential customers who live in disadvantaged communities (as defined by CalEPA’s CalEnviroScreen 4) and who are enrolled in the California Alternate Rates for Energy (CARE) or the Family Electric Rate Assistance program (FERA). Eligible customers receive the DAC‑GT product and an additional 20 percent reduction in the electricity and delivery portion of their bill; Tobar said that discount, combined with CARE or FERA, will amount to roughly a 50 percent overall bill reduction for eligible customers.

Why it matters: Community solar under DAC‑GT is intended to extend renewable benefits to households in census tracts that score high on CalEnviroScreen metrics.…