Iowa is one in every of solely 5 states that didn’t obtain statewide funding via the US Environmental Protection Agency’s $7 billion Solar for All Program, which is designed to ship residential solar energy to about 900,000 houses nationwide. The 60 federal grants introduced on April 22 will concentrate on “long-lasting photo voltaic packages” focusing on “low-income and deprived communities.”
The Iowa Economic Development Authority didn’t touch upon why the EPA declined to fund the state’s utility for $75 million via a aggressive grant program. Critics have famous the state’s “utility-driven method,” which doesn’t embrace labor unions or registered apprenticeship packages.
A RECORD INVESTMENT IN RESIDENTIAL SOLAR
Solar for All, the most important federal residential photo voltaic enlargement program, is one in every of a number of EPA initiatives funded via the Inflation Reduction Act. Then US Representative Cindy Axne was the one Iowan who voted for that regulation, which was permitted by Congress and signed by President Joe Biden in August 2022.
The Clean Energy States Alliance created this map for example the statewide Solar for All awards introduced final month. Four of Iowa’s border states will every obtain $62.45 million. Illinois and Missouri will obtain $156.12 million every. Most of the “marked states” used for the comparability of the state authorities reorganization plan of Governor Kim Reynolds final 12 months may even obtain tens of hundreds of thousands of {dollars}.
An unknown variety of Iowans can acquire entry to residential photo voltaic installations via two multi-state nonprofit tasks which have obtained Solar for All awards. GRID Alternatives cited Iowa and 28 different states in its utility, which was awarded $249.8 million. Mentioned by Inclusive Prosperity Capital, Inc. Iowa and 46 different states in its proposal, which can obtain $249.3 million.
WHERE THE IOWA APPLICATION IS DEFINED
The Iowa Economic Development Authority’s $75 million proposal outlines a five-year plan to create an Iowa Community Solar Program, with targets of putting in 103 megawatts of photo voltaic and including 3.5 megawatt-hours of storage capability to learn in 12,000 households. The utility supplies estimate that this system will save Iowa households $80.4 million over 20 years, whereas avoiding 165,710 tons of CO2 emissions every year.
One apparent downside is Iowa’s concentrate on neighborhood photo voltaic tasks, quite than distributed era equivalent to residential photo voltaic installations. In saying the grants final month, the EPA famous that 90 p.c “of chosen candidates plan to fund residential rooftop photo voltaic,” whereas 88 p.c “plan to fund the deployment of residential-serving neighborhood and shared photo voltaic via totally different possession fashions that allow households in deprived communities to entry the extra financial advantages of asset possession.”
Josh Mandelbaum, senior lawyer for the Environmental Law & Policy Center, sees the Solar for All grant as “one other instance of how the failed method of the Reynolds Administration and Iowa utilities has value the state of ten million {dollars} in funding to help the clear power transition,” he instructed Bleeding Heartland.
As a state, we’ve got been sluggish to develop a framework for neighborhood photo voltaic usually, and distributed and low-income neighborhood photo voltaic particularly. Instead of utilizing this program as a chance to meet up with main states and create a powerful coverage framework, Iowa’s utility adopts a utility-driven method that doesn’t create a pathway for deploying photo voltaic past the given. If Iowa would not wish to lose its spot as a clear power chief and lose high-quality clear power jobs, this could function a wake-up name for change. in our technique.
Samantha Groark, government director of the Central Iowa Building & Construction Trades Council, additionally noticed that the funds that Iowa didn’t get may “strengthen the state’s power effectivity” along with combating local weather change. He famous, “The Davis-Bacon (prevailing wage) protections would have utilized to development and development work accomplished beneath the grant, which may have meant increased high quality, family-sustaining jobs for these Iowans.”
Groark additionally criticized Iowa’s method in a remark offered through e mail.
In reviewing the highlights from the profitable states’ purposes, it seems that at the least one factor Iowa lacked in its proposal was the inclusion of labor unions and development trades councils, and -recognized by the state’s present registered apprenticeship coaching program. It is just not obvious to the Iowa State Building & Construction Trades Council or its regional associates and labor union membership that any effort has been made on the a part of the state to cooperate with the applying or get hold of any letters of help, which can’ g will strengthen Iowa. alternative. In its package deal of letters, it’s famous that there’s nothing from the institution of commerce unions.
Guidance from the EPA grant analysis supplies states that candidates are inspired to submit letters of help from, amongst a number of teams, “unions” and “labor facilities.” They do not exist. In truth, they solely obtained one letter of help associated to any registered apprenticeship program or workforce coaching program: the small Meskwaki Tribe apprenticeship.
The EPA has clarified that grant purposes should make commitments to sturdy labor requirements, together with the usage of registered apprenticeship packages, prime wages, and partnerships with labor organizations and teams. neighborhood primarily based.
Groark is anxious that the state is “proposing to create new state-run registered apprenticeships and job classifications” via the brand new Iowa Workforce Development Iowa Office of Apprenticeship, as an alternative of becoming a member of current ones. photo voltaic coaching program. He added, “There are hard-working women and men engaged on photo voltaic tasks throughout Iowa in the present day, together with members of development commerce unions who take pleasure of their coaching and high quality of labor. Iowa’s need as stating in its utility that the state will solely present authorities funding to companies to create new coaching packages appears off the mark, and apparently the EPA agrees.
Andrew Johnson, government director of Clean Energy Districts of Iowa, has a special take. He thanked the workers of the State Energy Office (a part of the Economic Development Authority) for devoting important time and power to Iowa’s utility. “They reached out to companions throughout the state to develop an method that, whereas not good, holds actual promise for increasing photo voltaic entry to low-income households throughout Iowa,” he stated. within the Bleeding Heartland.
Johnson credit the Biden administration and EPA for the Inflation Reduction Act, however he thinks the federal authorities “dropped the ball” in rejecting Iowa’s Solar for All utility. “I do not know their reasoning,” he added, however for the reason that Solar for All funding is for states (not like the opposite two EPA Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund packages), Johnson feels that ” they have to fulfill the aim of this system and fund every state that applies, even when they wish to maintain funds for non-profit entities as properly.
Iowa’s Clean Energy Districts nonetheless hope “important” funds will come to Iowa, Johnson stated, via the GRID Alternatives and Inclusive Prosperity Capital awards talked about above.
We also needs to word that Iowa doesn’t have to depend on federal funds to assist deliver photo voltaic growth to houses throughout the state. Passing a model of neighborhood photo voltaic and/or digital internet metering as stalled within the legislature this session, and requiring utilities to help neighborhood photo voltaic subscriptions for low-income households inside our ratepayer-funded power effectivity packages and demand response, that is all. two strategies that can profit households in each county within the state.
In 2023, Iowa is one in every of solely 4 states that won’t apply for a $3 million planning grant beneath the EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program, one other initiative of the Inflation Reduction Act. Des Moines, Cedar Rapids, and Iowa City later utilized for smaller planning grants beneath that program. The ensuing plan for the Des Moines metro space to cut back greenhouse gasoline emissions is right here, and the identical doc for East Central Iowa (masking counties in and across the Cedar Rapids/Iowa City metro) is right here.
Top picture: “Dave, a Solar Installation Supervisor who works for GRID Alternatives Mid-Atlantic, inspects photo voltaic panels after set up for a low-income household in Baltimore, Maryland.” Photo taken by Kirsten Rumsey for the US Department of Energy on July 6, 2016. Originally posted on Flickr, out there through Wikimedia Commons.