$27 million in challenge grants available to reduce barriers to residential solar energy

Thought folks might be interested in this note from the Department of Energy:

"As part of the Obama Administration's SunShot Initiative to make solar energy cost-competitive with fossil fuels within the decade, U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu has announced the availability of more than $27 million in new funding to challenge local governments and their partners -- working on a regional basis -- to bring down barriers to small scale residential and commercial photovoltaic (PV) solar installations. The Rooftop Solar Challenge  will also spur communities to enable innovative financing programs to help homeowners and entrepreneurs install solar energy systems on their homes and businesses.

The "non-hardware balance of system" costs of installing solar systems -- the capital required to pay for siting, permitting, and installation, as well as the cost of connecting the systems to the grid -- can represent up to 40% of the total cost of a solar energy system.  By incentivizing local governments to cut their upfront fees and paperwork and standardize their permitting processes, the Challenge will reduce the cost to homeowners and businesses of installing solar energy systems, while saving money and time for local governments struggling with tight budgets.

Using the Administration's "Race to the Top" model, the Rooftop Solar Challenge will incentivize regions to find new ways to tackle old problems and use the best of those innovative solutions as models for other regions. The funding will support $12.5 million to encourage locally led regional approaches to standardizing permitting processes, improving interconnection and net metering standards, and increasing access to financing. The funding will also support $15 million to advance innovations in information technology systems, improve codes, and provide technical support for utilities to better integrate solar energy into utility operations.

For more information please see:www.eere.energy.gov/solarchallenge.