(a) The commission, in consultation with the Energy Commission and interested members of the public, shall establish eligibility criteria for solar thermal systems receiving gas customer funded incentives pursuant to this article. The criteria should specify and include all of the following:
(1) Design, installation, and energy output or displacement standards. To be eligible for rebate funding, a residential solar thermal system shall be certified by an accredited listing agency in accordance with standards adopted by the commission. Solar collectors used in systems for multifamily residential, commercial, government, nonprofit, educational, agricultural, or industrial applications shall be certified by an accredited listing agency in accordance with standards adopted by the commission. Energy output of collectors and systems shall be determined in accordance with procedures set forth by the listing agency, and shall be based on testing results from accredited testing laboratories.
(2) A requirement that solar thermal system components are new and unused, and have not previously been placed in service in any other location or for any other application.
(3) A requirement that solar thermal collectors have a warranty of not less than 10 years to protect against defects and undue degradation.
(4) A requirement that solar thermal systems are in buildings or facilities connected to a natural gas utility’s distribution system within the state.
(5) (A) A requirement that solar thermal systems have meters or other kWhth measuring devices in place to monitor and measure the system’s performance and the quantity of energy generated or displaced by the system.
(B) The commission shall exempt from this requirement system types for which the cost of monitoring a system is likely to exceed 2 percent of the system cost. After a public stakeholder process, the commission may adjust this percentage to ensure reasonable balance between customer cost and value received, taking into account factors including, but not limited to, customer class, system type, system size, or changes in the market.
(6) A requirement that solar thermal systems are installed in conformity with the manufacturer’s specifications and all applicable codes and standards.
(7) A requirement that, when the property is not owner-occupied, the tenant shall not contract for the installation of a solar thermal system. The tenant may request that the owner participate in such a program.
(b) Gas customer funded incentives shall not be made for a solar thermal system that does not meet the eligibility criteria.
(c) The commission may adopt consensus solar standards applicable to products or systems as developed by accredited standards developers.
(Amended by Stats. 2017, Ch. 473, Sec. 6. (AB 797) Effective January 1, 2018. Inoperative August 1, 2020. Repealed as of January 1, 2021, pursuant to Section 2867.4.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018