VIEW Partnership Monthly Report February 2011

San Joaquin Valley Partnership Program February 2011 Focus: San Joaquin Valley kWh and peak kW reductions This Month’s Major Accomplishments: The monthly Partnership meeting was held on February 3, 2011. Energy Upgrade California was discussed in length as was Habitat for Humanity of Tulare County’s efforts to build ‘green’. With a grant from SCE, Habitat for Humanity is installing photovoltaic systems on homes and it’s ‘Brush with Kindness’ program works to serve low-income homeowners in maintaining their home with no-cost upgrades. Jurisdiction partners were encouraged to put Habitat for Humanity in touch with the Community Development Department from each city/county to aid in the efforts.

Implementer combined SCE and SCG utility data for each jurisdiction, with the exception of one, into comprehensive lists for jurisdiction partners to review. After review, implementer will be able to begin the actual process of data upload for municipal buildings into the EPA Energy Star Portfolio Manager benchmarking program.

The Partnership had a booth at the February 11 th – 13th Visalia Spring Fest Home and Patio Show. The booth included representatives from the jurisdictions and both utility partners. The Mobile Education Unit was also on hand and reported a successful expo with interested attendees even though crowds were less than predicted.

Implementer continued to work with jurisdictions and SCE on publicizing the Direct Install program. The program was scheduled to begin in the Visalia area February 24 th and will continue through March 2011 in the VIEW territories. All jurisdictions that submitted a city/county signature and logo, with the exception of the City of Visalia, had customized promotional letters go out to corresponding cities’ small businesses. The City of Visalia letter was delayed for an extended period of time with the SCE legal department; once the wording was finalized, Visalia had minimal time to submit a signature and missed the deadline to have it included on the letter before it went to print. Although there were challenges along the way, including coordinating customized letters for each jurisdiction, SCE program manager and SCE regional managers helped move the process along in order to best promote the Direct Install program.

Hammad Chaudhry replaced Jesse Langley as SCE program manager.

Implementer attended the February 24th dedication ceremony for SCE’s Solar Generating Station in Porterville.

Implementer provided conversation points for interested parties to respond to the white paper issued in advance of the CPUC workshop on energy efficiency programs post-2012.

Key Issues or Emerging Concerns: Implementer outreached to all eight jurisdictions regarding the California state legislature attempt to "grab" Gas efficiency PGC funds to fill holes in the state budget.

Jurisdictions were able to speak out to legislators thanks to the efforts of the Gas Company in providing up to date information and contacts. The SJVCEO Board of Directors Executive Committee unanimously voted to issue a letter of support of gas programs and the letter was sent to Senator Darrel Steinberg, as well as to the Valley delegation of elected officials. The SJVCEO reached out to the California Partnership for the San Joaquin Valley, a public-private partnership authorized by the Governor to improve the quality of life in the Valley, and they too issued a formal letter of support.

As information is made available the implementer continues to provide updates to the partner jurisdictions.

Currently, the EECBG funded projects for Energy Efficiency Path (Only County of Tulare is affected) are still on hold as the attorneys with the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District (SJVAPCD) review the implementation contract. The SJVCEO EECBG Project manager responsible for implementing the projects will remain in close communication with the County to keep them advised of the project process. The cities of Lindsay and Woodlake chose to pursue the Direct Purchase path and are under way with the permitting process.

Upcoming Milestones Implementer will continue work with jurisdiction partners to update and finalize the Detailed Partnership Plan. The DPP has been under review and revision over the summer months, as it had not been updated since the 2009 bridge funding period.

Partner jurisdictions have been slow to respond with updates to their historical and future efforts.

The Partnership will hold its quarterly Marketing Taskforce Meeting and monthly Partnership Meeting on Thursday, March 3, 2011.

On March 23rd implementer, with the Statewide Energy Efficiency Collaborative, will host a class on conducting a greenhouse gas emissions inventory for both government operations and at the community scale. VIEW and Kern Energy Watch partners are enthusiastic to finally have a local opportunity.

Implementer will travel to Downey on March 29th to attend the SCE/SCG Partners meeting, representing the jurisdiction partners. Implementer will continue to encourage jurisdiction officials to attend in person.

The Partnership will have a booth with the second Mobile Education Unit at the Porterville Iris Festival on Saturday, April 16th.

SCE Business Solutions will continue Direct Install efforts in the VIEW territory through March of 2011. Partners are working with the implementer to publicize the program at a local level, and the implementer is working with the utility to ensure correct information and materials are provided to the jurisdictions.