The City of Berkeley approves a program to give loans to property owners installing solar panels (Photo: Flickr)

The Berkeley City Council recently unanimously approved a program to give city-backed loans to property owners who install rooftop solar-power systems. The program comes at a time when many other cities, including Palm Desert and Annapolis, are pursuing similar programs to save energy, money and the planet. The loans, which are likely to total up to $22,000 apiece, would be paid off over 20 years as part of the owners’ property-tax bills. Participating homeowners that opt into the program would pay about $180 more per month on their property tax bills, which would be partially or wholly offset by savings on electric bills. In Berkeley, such loans have previously been used to pay for neighborhood improvements, like burying electrical wiring.

Initially Berkeley seeks to raise $1.5 million for a pilot program for about 50 homes. If the program is successful, the kitty could eventually grow to tens of millions of dollars, and hundreds of property owners could be eligible. If the early phase is successful, the city government is likely to expand the range of projects it will finance, supporting energy-efficiency initiatives such as adding insulation.

G. Craig Hill, a representative of the firm Northcross, Hill & Ach, which is advising the City Council on the financial details says that he is negotiating with two private groups willing to try to resell the new city-backed debt obligations in a skittish marketplace.

Christine Daniel, a deputy city manager working with Mr. Hill, believes the debt is very secure, since it is backed by property tax revenues in a city that collects 98% of the money it is owed each year.

Professor Daniel Kammen of UC Berkeley’s Energy & Resources Group said he was not worried, pointing out that venture capitalists have been pouring billions of dollars into the development of alternative-energy technologies.

“There’s so much more money there than ideas,” says Kammen.

Mayor Tom Bates thinks the idea is going to spread like wildfire through other city governments. He said nearly two dozen cities have indicated they want to follow suit.

• Read more: “Berkeley Approves City-Backed Loans for Solar Panels” (The New York Times, 9/17/08)
• Related: “Energy Efficiency and Solar Loans Program Linked to Property Tax Reaches Annapolis” (Power Plug, 9/10/08)
• Related: “Palm Desert Launches California’s First Energy Efficiency and Solar Loan Program” (Power Plug, 9/9/08)