Tuesday 1, May 2012

Introducing David Sundstrom

The Sonoma County Energy Independence Program (SCEIP) Storefront staff would like to take this opportunity to introduce the SCEIP Program Administrator, David E. Sundstrom, CPA, CIA.  David has served as the Auditor-Controller Treasurer-Tax Collector (ACTTC) of Sonoma County since taking office on February 1, 2012.  In his role as the ACTTC of Sonoma County, David also serves as the Program Administrator of SCEIP.  David comes to Sonoma County following nearly fourteen years as the Auditor-Controller of Orange County.  Before transitioning to county service, David worked in the education systems University Auditor for the California State University Board of Trustees and as campus audit manager for the University of California at Davis for sixteen combined years.

David has been a strong supporter of Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) programs for some time.  In Orange County, he worked with the County Board of Supervisors and outside contractors to develop the OC Sunergy Program.  As the SCEIP Program Administrator, David has the responsibility of program oversight including his authorization to enter into contractual assessments on behalf of the County, bonding, debt issuance, management of debt in the Treasury investment pool, monitoring the SCEIP program budget, including the interest rate spread that funds the program, and providing semi-annual program updates to the Board of Supervisors.

His commitment to efficiency and conservation is also personal as demonstrated by installation of his first solar electric project over 25 years ago and continued upgrades on his home.  In a recent interview, David is quoted as saying, I am an energy conservation zealot," having installed a number of improvements to his last residence including a 5.8 kW solar system, insulation upgrades, replacement of air conditioners and inefficient appliances, and a solar hot water system.  The staff is excited to have such a strong advocate leading the program and the support of someone who understands the importance of reducing our demand and producing energy if you can.  "I am looking forward to the program's impact on achieving our local goals to reduce gas and electric demand, and doing our best to educate the public on how they can save money in the process," said David after the recent SCEIP update to the Board.  Storefront staff is looking forward to helping our new Program Administrator with his Action Plan for his new home here in Sonoma County.

David Sundstrom will be joining the SCEIP staff at the upcoming Contractor Forum, scheduled for May 25th at the SCEIP storefront.  Please join us on that date to meet David in person.

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Action Plan Update

As a requirement to SCEIP financing, all residential property owners are asked to view the Department of Energy's Energy 101 video, review the Residential Energy Education presentation, and complete a short Energy Use Survey.  The estimated combined time for completing these items is less than 15 minutes. 

Through this process, we strive to provide you with information on energy savings, SCEIP services, and gather your current energy use data so that we can later report on the energy savings resulted from SCEIP financing. 

The Action Plan tool is also available to help you maximize your energy savings for your home improvement project.  While use of this tool is not a requirement to financing, we are hoping you'll try it out and gain useful information.

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SCEIP One Step Closer to Resolution in FHFA Litigation

In an order filed on Thursday, April 26th, a three-judge panel for the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said it would delay a decision on an appeal by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) until a district court takes further action in an ongoing legal dispute.

At issue was the FHFA's request to stop (dismiss) the order that forced them into the rulemaking process.  Sonoma County hopes that through this rulemaking process, the FHFA will be required to retract their opposition to Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing.  The FHFA Rulemaking Portal received over 30,000 letters in response to their public comment period as a part of the rulemaking process.

Both sides will be facing each other again on May 3rd in a federal district court in Oakland, California.

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Local Bid Requirement Part of SCEIP Process

As a result of SCEIP's ongoing commitment to bring work to local contractors, over 86% of SCEIP-funded improvements were installed by local contractors.  This equates to $52 million driven into the local economy by local contractors during the last 3 years!

SCEIP continues to support work completed by local contractors.  This is evidenced by the local bid requirement - if an application is submitted with a bid from an out-of-area contractor, a second bid from a local contractor will also be required.  The property owner makes the ultimate decision on whether or not to use the bid from the local contractor. 

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Contractor Corner

PG&E Whole House Program Update:  New Protocols Go Into Effect May 1st

Starting May 1st, ALL jobs must be submitted using PG&E's new combustion safety testing protocols.  These protocols, which augment those specified by BPI, are taught at the Advanced Package Technical Training.  If you do not attend this training, your jobs may be returned for revisions because certain testing protocols were not met.  Upcoming trainings dates and times can be viewed on the EUC Contractor Portal Calendar at www.builditgreenutility.org/calendar.  Registration is required.

SCEIP Hosts Building Performance Contractors Focus Groups on Action Plan Tool

As a part of a continuous improvement process, SCEIP hosted two focus groups on the Action Plan tool.  The developers of the Action Plan tool were able to get great feedback from building performance contractors on how to improve the tool and enhance the tool's ability  to bring new people through the door versus be an impediment for those already considering retrofit financing.

A few new goals for the Action Plan tool include using the tool to educate and drive people to engage in whole home performance and broaden the tool's promotion to further consider other customer types, including health/comfort, modernization, and green factors.

PG&E Pacific Energy Center Provides Training for Selling Efficiency

The PG&E Pacific Energy Center is offering a free, specialized training for sales and marketing professionals.  The class is on "Selling Efficiency" and is taught by Mark Jewell of Energy Efficiency Funding Group.  The next class is being held on May 18th.  For more information and to register go to www.pge.com/pec/classes/5360.htm or www.pge.com/energyclasses. 

SCEIP Hosts Training in Partnership with CalCERTS and Marin Workforce Investment Board

Beginning Tuesday, May 8th, SCEIP is hosting a 15-day workforce training partnership with the Marin Workforce Investment Board and CalCERTS.  This training was made available to Sonoma County contractors through a regional partnership of four counties to provide scholarships in green building, BPI, HERS, and solar installation/design certifications to those that qualify.  The class roster for this training has been set, but watch our newsletter and calendar for other upcoming opportunities.

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