25619.
(a) The commission shall develop a grant program to offset a portion of the cost of eligible solar energy systems. The goals of the program are all of the following:(1) To make solar energy systems cost competitive with alternate forms of energy.
(2) To provide support for electricity storage capabilities in solar electric applications to facilitate enhanced reliability in the event of a power outage.
(3) To encourage the purchase by California residents of California-made solar systems.
(b) (1) The grant for an eligible solar energy system shall be based on either the performance of, or the type of, the solar energy system, as the commission determines, and the amount of the grant shall not exceed seven hundred fifty dollars ($750). Except as provided in paragraph (2), if a grant is awarded pursuant to this section for an eligible solar energy system that produces electricity, no grant shall be made for that system from any other grant program administered by the commission.
(2) An applicant who receives a grant for a photovoltaic solar energy system from another program administered by the commission, may also receive a grant for that system pursuant to this section, if all of the following conditions are met:
(A) The system will accomplish the purpose specified in paragraph (3) of subdivision (a).
(B) The system is an eligible solar energy system.
(C) The system includes adequate battery storage, as determined by the commission.
(c) Purchasers, sellers, owner-builders, or owner-developers of the solar energy system may apply for a grant under this section. An owner-builder or owner-developer of a new single-family dwelling on which a system is installed may elect not to apply for a grant on a solar energy system installed on a new single-family dwelling. If an owner-builder or owner-developer of a new single-family dwelling on which a system is installed elects not to apply for the grant for a solar energy system, the purchaser of the dwelling may apply for the grant. The seller, owner-builder, or owner-developer shall reflect the amount of the grant received on the purchaser’s bill of sale.
(d) The commission shall develop and adopt guidelines to provide appropriate consumer protection under the grant program and to govern other aspects of the grant program. The guidelines shall be adopted at a publicly noticed meeting and all interested parties shall be provided an opportunity to comment either orally or in writing. Not less than 30 days notice shall be provided for the public meeting. Subsequent substantive changes to adopted guidelines shall be adopted by the commission at a public meeting upon written notice to the public of not less than 10 days. The guidelines adopted pursuant to this subdivision are not subject to the requirements of Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
(e) The commission shall require installers of solar energy systems funded through grants under this section to be properly licensed to do so by the Contractors’ State License Board. This requirement does not apply to the owner of a single-family dwelling who installs a solar energy system on his or her single-family dwelling.
(f) The award of a grant pursuant to this section is subject to appeal to the commission upon a showing that factors other than those described in the guidelines adopted by the commission were applied in making the award. Any action taken by an applicant to apply for, or become or remain eligible to receive an award, including satisfying conditions specified by the commission, does not constitute the rendering of goods, services, or a direct benefit to the commission. Awards made pursuant to this section are not subject to any repayment requirements of Chapter 7.4 (commencing with Section 25645).
(g) For the purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
(1) “Cost” includes equipment, installation charges, and all components necessary to carry out the intended use of the system if those components are an integral part of the system. In the case of a system that is leased, “cost” means the principal recovery portion of all lease payments scheduled to be made during the full term of the lease, which is the cost incurred by the taxpayer in acquiring the solar energy system, excluding interest charges and maintenance expenses.
(2) (A) “Eligible solar energy system” means any new, previously unused solar energy device whose primary purpose is to provide for the collection, conversion, transfer, distribution, storage, or control of solar energy for water heating or electricity generation, and that meets applicable standards and requirements imposed by state and local permitting authorities, including, but not limited to, the National Electric Code. Eligible solar energy systems for water heating purposes shall be certified by the Solar Rating and Certification Corporation (SRCC) or any other nationally recognized certification agency that certifies complete systems. Major components of eligible solar energy systems for electricity generation shall be listed by a certified testing agency, such as the Underwriters Laboratory. In the absence of certification, major components of eligible solar energy systems for electricity generation shall comply with specifications adopted by the commission.
(B) “Eligible solar energy system” does not include any of the following:
(i) Wind energy devices that produce electricity or provide mechanical work.
(ii) Additions to or augmentation of existing solar energy systems.
(iii) A device that produces electricity for a structure unless the device is interconnected and operates in parallel with the electric grid.
(C) Eligible solar energy systems shall have a warranty of not less than three years.
(3) “Installed” means placed in a functionally operative state.
(h) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2006, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2006, deletes or extends that date.