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Commission recommends council extend Go Green home financing MOA; UAC vote 5-0
Summary
The Utilities Advisory Commission on Sept. 9 recommended that City Council approve an amendment to extend the city’s memorandum of agreement with Kirtfa (California Energy and Advanced Transportation Finance Authority) to continue the Go Green home financing program.
The Utilities Advisory Commission on Sept. 9 recommended that City Council approve an amendment to extend the city’s memorandum of agreement with Kirtfa (identified at the meeting as the California Energy and Advanced Transportation Finance Authority) so Palo Alto residents can continue to access the state’s Go Green home financing program for electrification and energy-efficiency projects.
Shiva Swamin, senior resource planner, asked the commission to recommend council approval of Amendment No. 1 to extend the agreement from two years to five years while keeping the city contribution at $300,000. Swamin said that to date the city has processed one Go Green loan for $25,000 for a heat-pump space-heating project with a 2½-year term and 3.98% interest; the borrower had a strong credit profile.
Swamin summarized staff’s rationale: extending the MOA will allow the city to “road test” the program as whole-home electrification projects begin to scale. Jonathan Ebershine added that staff view this financing option as a complement to the city’s larger electrification work and that the program’s administrative costs have been lower than initially estimated.
Commissioners discussed contractor participation and outreach. Staff said more than 100 contractors in the broader service region are eligible for the program and that the program will be promoted through the city’s electrification rebate and whole-home programs. Staff also said the program’s funding is drawn from restricted natural-gas cap-and-trade funds, not the utility rate base.
Motion and vote: Commissioner Metz moved that the UAC recommend council approve Amendment No. 1 to the MOA; the motion carried 5–0 on a roll call of Vice chair Mater, Commissioner Metz, Commissioner Croft, Chair Phillips and Commissioner Gupta.
Next steps: The UAC recommendation will be forwarded to City Council for final approval. Staff said they will return with updates on program uptake and administrative costs.
