San Diego, CA

California’s Property Tax Exemption for Solar (officially called the Active Solar Energy System Exclusion) prevents homeowners from paying higher property taxes when they install solar panels. When you add solar to your home, the county assessor will not increase your property tax assessment, even though you’ve added value to your property.

This tax benefit applies to all qualifying solar energy systems that generate electricity or heat water (except for solar pool heaters and hot tub heaters). The exclusion is automatic for existing homeowners – no application is needed. If you’re purchasing a newly built home with solar already installed, you may qualify for the exclusion if the builder didn’t receive it and you file form BOE-64-SES with your county assessor.

The financial benefit varies based on your solar system’s value and local tax rates, but typically saves homeowners hundreds of dollars annually in avoided property tax increases. This incentive is currently scheduled to remain available through the 2025-26 fiscal year (sunset date: January 1, 2027).

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 by providing 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. Created under Assembly Bill 209 in 2022, this initiative allocates $630 million to support battery storage incentives for qualifying Californians, addressing previous criticisms that clean energy programs primarily benefited higher-income households.

Eligible homeowners can receive substantial rebates for battery storage installations at rates of $150, $850, or $1,000 per kilowatt-hour, depending on specific qualifications. To qualify, you must be enrolled in California’s CARE/FERA program, live in a Disadvantaged Community, or reside in a California Tribal community. Additional higher rebates are available for residents in areas prone to wildfires or frequent power outages. CARE participants also receive approximately 35% off their electric bills, while FERA participants receive about 18% off.

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 most major utilities in the state. 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 previous programs that credited solar exports at retail rates, Net Billing values exports based on the utility’s avoided costs.

For customers of Pacific Gas & Electric (PGE), Southern California Edison (SCE), and San Diego Gas & Electric (SDGE), the export credit values change hourly based on the grid’s needs, using each utility’s Avoided Cost Calculator. Imperial Irrigation District offers a fixed rate of $0.0698 per kWh with monthly settlement. Any unused credits during your annual true-up period are typically paid out at approximately 3-5 cents per kWh. Notably, municipal utilities like LADWP maintain more favorable 1:1 net metering policies.

To qualify for Net Billing, you must submit a complete interconnection application to your utility. The program officially began on April 15, 2023, and any applications submitted after this date are automatically enrolled in NEM 3 rather than the more favorable NEM 2.0 program. If you have an existing NEM 2.0 system, be aware that increasing your system size or decreasing it by more than 20% will move you to the new Net Billing program.

Homeowners should note that Net Billing customers can select their annual true-up month by contacting their utility, which can be strategically valuable. While the export rates are generally lower than previous net metering programs, combining solar with battery storage can help maximize the value of your system by storing excess energy for use during peak rate periods rather than exporting at lower values.