All your questions about going electric in DC — answered! 

DC residents can lower their utility bills and make their homes safer and cleaner! 

The Inflation Reduction Act act provides money to states to pay for home electrification. Starting as soon as fall 2023, DC will be using this money to pay for complete home electrification for low income homeowners, provide some assistance to those with higher incomes, and to provide renters with rebates for electric appliances. Beyond this, DC has additional funding available through “Solar For All” and the “Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program” (LIHEAP). 

The most important thing you can do right now is sign up with the Chesapeake Climate Action Network to be contacted about free home electrification programs as soon as they become available. 

Have questions about how you can go electric in DC for less? We have the answers! While some solutions listed below are income-dependent, others are for all income levels, so read on to see what works for you. 

Q: I already have trouble affording my electric and gas bills. How can I start saving money right now? 

A: Once you apply for LIHEAP (Low income home energy assistance program) it will opt you in to Solar for All community solar, which acts as a discount on your electric bill. You can also apply for the Weatherization Assistance Program and/or the Emergency Mechanical Assistance Program. These won’t make your home electric, but they can help save you money. Weatherization will also help the environment. 

Q: Are there any other programs you would recommend to improve my home? 

A: The DC Partnership for Healthy Homes can help you fix in-home health hazards if you income qualify. Check their web page for the specific problems they can help with.

Eligible households include:

  • Children with severe and poorly controlled asthma;
  • Children less than 6 years old with a blood lead level of concern; and
  • District residents with a child less than 6 or a pregnant household member, whose home contains health and safety threats.

Q: How can I sign up to save money using solar energy? 

A: The DC Sustainable Energy Utility (DCSEU)’s Community Solar or Solar for All programs may be able to reduce your utility bills and help the environment at no cost to you. Fill out their form and their expert customer service staff will contact you. [something about community solar for renters?

If qualified, you will be able to upgrade your natural gas HVAC system to energy-efficient equipment that will save you energy and money, including a smart thermostat, electric heat pump, and electric heat pump water heater, where applicable. All who qualify must be District homeowners or renters living in single-family homes with 4 units or less, meet the same income limits above for the Solar for All Program, and your home must have an existing natural gas heating or water heating system.

I don’t qualify for Solar for All. Can I still get solar panels? 

Of course. Find a list of contractors at the bottom of this page.  

DC offers Solar Renewable Energy Credits (SRECs) for solar energy generation. These can be traded or sold, in effect earning you dividends for providing green energy. Because of this, private companies may offer to install solar panels for free (and take the SRECs) or,if you purchase the panels yourself, you will likely get a monthly SREC payment. Please consult this guide for more detailed information. 

Remember, companies get paid by the panel, and may try to see you panels that are not situated to optimally generate electricity.  A reputable company will recommend the panels that can make electricity effectively, not just cover any available space with panels. 

Q: I want to electrify my home as soon as possible! What can I do using my own money? 

A: There are three first steps you can choose from: 

  • Use the energy star website to find a home energy audit contractor. The contractor will assess your home energy usage and can recommend next electrification steps.
  • Have an electrician come to your house and install plugs that can handle an electric stove, water heater, dryer, and most importantly, heat pump. That way, when your appliances break, you can quickly install electric ones.
  • If your appliances are not likely to break soon, finance a purchase of solar panels, and use the money you save to pay for home electrification. 
What are some useful guides to the entire home electrification process? 

CCAN on the Road: Spreading the Word about the Inflation Reduction Act

ARCHIVED PAGE. For more on Inflation Reduction Act, see updated page here.

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On an unseasonably warm and sunny winter day, Chesapeake Climate Action Network and Solar United Neighbors visited the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia to deep dive into the details about the Inflation Reduction Act. Our goal was to help folks realize the potential benefits of this bill and how it could personally impact their lives. 

However, if you would have told me this day would come in July of last year, I might not have believed you. You see, CCAN started advocating for this bill in the early summer of 2021 when it was still called the American Jobs Plan. And we didn’t stop fighting for it as it underwent its many name changes and compromises to bend and evolve until a certain West Virginian Senator decided it was palatable. It was a disheartening time, being strung along for almost two years, trying every possible action we could imagine. But we never gave up. We agreed that no matter what happened, we wanted to be able to say “We left it all on the field.” Even when a lot of other organizations were sure there was no hope, we worked hard to keep the faith alive. 

Shortly after celebrating the passage of this bill, we started to brainstorm ways that we could distill the massive amount of information contained within the IRA without overwhelming people. We know this federal investment is amazing, but unless folks are educated in how to tap into these programs they won’t be able to reap the benefits!

Bringing the Roadshow to Martinsburg

The desire to connect individuals and communities to these programs led to the birth of the Inflation Reduction Act Roadshow. Our first event held at the Martinsburg Public Library had a cross section of attendees, including engaged citizens, small business owners and impassioned advocates. Folks snacked on delicious food, chatted with one another and participated in a dynamic discussion and question-and-answer session after the presentation. 

Later, we held a similar presentation online—you can watch it at this link. But read on for a summary of a few key takeaways:

Benefits for you: Making it easy to go electric!

The clearest way the IRA will help individual households is by providing funding to go electric, by switching your household heating and cooking systems to electric, retrofitting for efficiency, switching to electric cars, and even going solar.

Household electrification

Many homes run on gas for heating and cooking purposes. The IRA helps you switch to electric with direct and indirect financial assistance. Here are a few examples—but watch the webinar to learn more, or check out Rewiring America’s handy IRA benefit calculator.

  • Switching to an electric/induction stove: Rebates cover 100 percent for low-income households and 50 percent for moderate-income households for costs up to $840
  • Heat pump water heater: Rebates cover 100 percent for low-income households and 50 percent for moderate-income households for costs up to $1,750
  • Weatherization: Rebates cover 100 percent for low-income households and 50 percent for moderate-income households for costs up to $1,600
  • Electrical panel: Rebates cover 100 percent for low-income households and 50 percent for moderate-income households for costs up to $4,000. On top of this, rule 25C provides a 30 percent tax credit for an electrical panel upgrade capped at $600 per year when combined with another upgrade covered by 25C (like a heat pump or water heater)

Electric vehicles

  • Tax credits up to $7,500 for new electric cars will continue indefinitely
  • Tax credits of up to $4,000 for used electric cars

Go Green

  • Putting solar panels on your home has never been easier! The bill extends a 30% residential solar tax credit for 10 years
  • Standalone residential battery storage now qualifies for this 30% tax credit too

Benefits for the climate

The IRA turbocharges the clean energy industry in many ways, like by allowing nonprofits, public schools, faith-based organizations, local governments, tribal governments, rural electric co-ops, to receive 30% off new solar panels through direct payment. All told, the policy will cut annual emissions in 2030 by an additional one billion metric tons!

Benefits for the economy

Jobs, jobs, jobs: this policy results in JOBS. By boosting funding for major programs, the IRA will add:

  • Five million jobs in the clean energy sector
  • Nearly 380,000 jobs in agriculture to support farmers using regenerative practices
  • More than 50,000 jobs to help coastal communities protect themselves from sea level rise and storms
  • More than 100,00 jobs to restore our forests
  • More than 20,000 new jobs in the National Parks program

And much, much more! Watch the whole presentation here:

 

The evolution of this legislation was long and storied, with  many changes as the bill progressed through Congress. The IRA Roadshow gave an opportunity for West Virginians to receive the most up-to-date and relevant information for their families and communities. But we’re here to provide human connection to legislation that happens in what sometimes seems like the faraway land of Washington, DC. By joining forces with SUN we were able to provide information and field questions that highlight the benefits of sensible, people-driven policy and how it can impact West Virginians and the nation as a whole in meaningful and sustainable ways.

Our inaugural event in Berkeley County was a success and we are looking forward to future Roadshows across West Virginia, Virginia, Maryland and DC. 

If you, your organization or municipality would like to host an event like this, please don’t hesitate to contact our West Virginia organizer, Holly Bradley (holly@chesapeakeclimate.org) or our federal policy director, Quentin Scott (quentin@chesapeakeclimate.org). 

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