Long Beach, CA

The California Active Solar Energy System Property Tax Exclusion prevents homeowners from paying additional property taxes when they install solar panels or other qualifying solar energy systems. Unlike typical home improvements that increase your property tax assessment, solar installations are excluded from reassessment, meaning your property taxes won’t go up when you add solar to your home.

This incentive applies to systems that collect, store, or distribute solar energy for electricity production, water heating, or space conditioning. Swimming pool heaters and hot tub heaters don’t qualify. The exclusion is currently available through the 2025-26 fiscal year (sunset date: January 1, 2027). If you purchase a newly built home with solar already installed, you may qualify for the exclusion as the initial purchaser if the builder didn’t receive the exclusion and the construction was completed after January 1, 2008.

The Disadvantaged Communities Single-Family Affordable Solar Homes (DAC-SASH) Program is a California state initiative designed to make solar energy accessible to low-income homeowners in disadvantaged communities. This program offers substantial financial assistance through fixed, upfront incentives of up to $3 per watt to help offset the cost of installing a solar energy system on your home.

To qualify for the DAC-SASH program, you must meet several eligibility requirements: you must own and live in your home, receive electrical service from one of California’s major utilities (PG&E, SCE, or SDG&E), be enrolled in or eligible for the CARE or FERA income-qualified utility bill programs, and your property must be located in a designated disadvantaged community area. If you think you might qualify, you can visit the GRID Alternatives website for more information and to apply for this valuable solar incentive.

The California Equity Fund is a state program designed to make clean energy more accessible to low-income households. Established in 2022 through Assembly Bill 209, this $630 million fund provides enhanced incentives for battery storage systems to communities that have historically had less access to renewable energy benefits.

Eligible homeowners can receive rebates of $150, $850, or $1,000 per kilowatt-hour of battery capacity installed. The highest rebate amounts are available to customers enrolled in CARE/FERA utility discount programs, residents of California tribal lands, disadvantaged communities (DACs), and areas with higher fire risks or frequent power outages. Additionally, qualifying low-income customers can receive increased net billing credits under NEM 3.0, with CARE program participants receiving approximately 35% off their electric bills and FERA participants receiving about 18% off.

To qualify, homeowners must be enrolled in California’s CARE/FERA program, live in designated Disadvantaged Communities, or reside in California Tribal communities. The program works in conjunction with the Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) to provide these enhanced benefits to eligible households.

California’s Net Billing program (also known as NEM 3) is a solar incentive structure that replaced the previous Net Energy Metering 2.0 program for new solar installations. Under this program, when your solar panels generate excess electricity that flows back to the grid, you receive credits on your utility bill based on the time and value of that electricity. Unlike the previous program, Net Billing compensates solar exports at varying rates throughout the day based on the utility’s avoided costs rather than at retail electricity rates.

The program applies to major California utilities including Southern California Edison (SCE), San Diego Gas & Electric (SDGE), and Pacific Gas & Electric (PGE). Export rates vary hourly according to each utility’s Avoided Cost Calculator, typically resulting in lower compensation than previous net metering programs. Any unused credits are paid out annually during your selected true-up month at approximately 3-5 cents per kilowatt-hour.

To qualify for Net Billing, your interconnection application must have been submitted on or after April 15, 2023. Homeowners who submitted complete applications before this date may still qualify for the more favorable NEM 2.0 program, provided they don’t increase their system size or decrease it by more than 20%. Some municipal utilities like LADWP maintain their own net metering programs and aren’t subject to the NEM 3 rules.

When considering solar under Net Billing, it’s important to understand that system sizing becomes more critical. Since export compensation rates are lower than retail electricity costs, systems that closely match your household consumption patterns typically provide better financial returns than oversized systems. Additionally, Net Billing customers can select their annual true-up month by contacting their utility, which offers some flexibility in managing your solar credits.