New Offerings this Summer from 3C-REN
Author: Department of Planning and Building
Date:
5/30/2023 9:13:48 AM
3C-REN announces new outreach and training opportunities and program updates. The single-family program is changing for new projects effective June 5th. For industry, in June 3C-REN is hosting an immersive Passive Housing Designer/Consultant Certification. In July they are offering a virtual regional forum Breaking Barriers – Energy Friendly Permitting. Read the article for more information.
3C-REN (Tri-County Regional Energy Network) is a partnership between the Counties of San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura established to deliver energy-saving programs and industry trainings that help reduce energy use, strengthen local job markets, and support efforts to achieve climate goals.
For households, 3C-REN offers direct energy saving opportunities, with an emphasis on hard-to-reach (HTR) and underserved communities. The Single Family incentive program pays incentives to contractors who have enrolled in 3C-REN’s program and install energy saving measures in single family residential households. Incentives can be stacked with other incentives in many cases; see the heat pump HVAC or Water Heater flyers for more information. Incentives will vary depending on the details of each project and the estimated energy savings. Customers interested in connecting with participating contractors to access discounted pricing should complete an interest form. Based on recent feedback, the single-family program has undergone some recent changes, effective June 5th, 2023, for new projects. These changes are based on contractor feedback to benefit even more customers. Check out the webinar detailing the changes here.
The Multi-Family rebate program pays property owners for installing energy efficiency upgrades. Currently, rebates are $500 to $750 per apartment unit, plus up to an additional $1,000 for each high efficiency heat pump water heater or furnace replacement. Rebates and incentives from other programs can often be stacked on top of 3C-REN rebates for additional savings. In 2022, 85% of the multi-family projects served HTR sites.
For industry, 3C-REN offers capacity-building services including workforce training and technical code support. Serving both public and private sector professionals, 3C-REN responds to the needs of the local building industry. Coming this summer, there will be a virtual regional forum on July 12th focusing on best practices and strategies for permitting processes for jurisdictions; register at Breaking Barriers - Energy Friendly Permitting. Also join 3C-REN and The Passive House Network in Santa Barbara the week of June 26th – 30th for an immersive Passive House Designer/Consultant Certification at Santa Barbara City College. Check out 3C-REN’s calendar of events for a complete list of trainings and courses available to our region. Energy Code Coaches are also available to answer energy code or CALGreen questions; submit your question using the webform and who knows, maybe your question will become our next blog post! Blogs are posted monthly; check out the latest post around ADUs and Solar Requirements.