Agenda - 02-04-20 6-a - Climate Action Tax Recommendations for FY 2019-20

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8 Council of Governments.The coalition model is considered a best practice in the industry as it maximizes the efficiency of services, minimizing waitlists and administrative costs. In partnership with the both the OCHPC and the Orange County Affordable Housing Coalition (OCAHC) additional resources would assist with their mobile home preservation efforts.The energy efficiency performance of manufactured housing is often much lower than housing built on-site and therefore the energy cost per square foot is higher. At the same time, low-cost repairs such as resealing the seams and ductwork of a manufactured home can make a big improvement in energy efficiency and quality of life. This project will help continue targeted outreach, assessments and low-cost energy efficiency improvements, and help with early identification of any further needs that might be met through the County's existing Urgent Repair Program such as roof leaks and septic issues. Rooftop Solar for Schools: The rooftop solar projects proposed for each school district is proposed to work through a grant to provide the schools with flexibility while preserving the ability of the County to track progress and impact. Proposed requirements of the grant would be: 1.) That the solar projects maximize the purchase power of the grant funding by considering leasing of the solar panels in the arrangement laid out in 2017 by H.B. 589, and report to the County on the decision that was made to purchase or lease. 2.) The grantees must report the total solar energy generated as well as the percent of each facility's energy use that was served by the solar system.This would provide pressure for continued focus on energy efficiency along with the renewable energy. 3.) The grantees must have a monitor showing the live energy performance of their systems in a public location with a sign noting that the system was paid for by proceeds of the Orange County Climate Action Tax. Adding solar to the rooftop of County school buildings would currently allow the schools to leverage up to $75,000 in solar incentives per project from Duke Energy.Adding solar to the schools would provide the additional benefit of exposing hundreds of Orange County students and parents to the practical application of sustainable technologies. Countywide LED campaign (Proposed by the CFE): An important part of Orange County's efforts to combat climate change will be encouraging residents and businesses to adopt practices that reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.This pilot campaign would focus on retrofitting Orange County households with LED light bulbs. According to the US Energy Information Agency as of 2017 about 10%of all household electricity is used for lighting. For the same amount of light, LEDs use about 75% less energy than incandescent bulbs and 5-10% less than fluorescents, all while minimizing heat output and lasting 10 times longer.According to the US Department of Energy, currently about 15%of US residents have adopted LEDs. While the adoption rate is probably higher in Orange County,there would still be room for improvement making this easy-to- install energy-saving technology a good focus for an energy efficiency campaign. The project would be run by the Orange County Sustainability Program in partnership with several Orange County departments and non-profits that directly serve the County's low-income households. The Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIEAP) run by the Orange County Department of Social Services helps Orange County residents to pay their energy bills in an emergency. This program is open to working with the Sustainability Program to distribute LED lightbulbs to those who request assistance.