Solar4SF.org

California continues to lead the nation in solar adoption - with substantial assistance from the state government. Unfortunately we’re seeing good old fashioned politics interfere with otherwise good legislation. In this case, AB 1451, a bill to encourage more solar usage is being blocked for purely political purposes. Details below:

Perata and Migden Join To Stop Leno Bills
by Randy Shaw‚ Sep. 07‚ 2007

“I am disappointed by Mark Leno’s challenge of a fellow Democrat with Carole’s experience, accomplishments and skill,” said Perata, who warned that all 25 Senate Democrats “will vigorously defend Sen. Migden. To get her, Mark must come over us.” — Senate Leader Don Perata, March 17, 2007

San Francisco Assemblyman Mark Leno is used to facing opposition from corporate and other special interests opposed to his progressive bills. But now Leno faces a new adversary: State Senator Leader Don Perata, who is preventing action on nearly all of Leno’s bills in a cynical attempt to “help” fellow Senator Carole Migden rebuff Leno’s June 2008 primary challenge. Thanks to the Perata-Migden agenda, Leno-sponsored bills to provide additional educational assistance to foster youth (AB 1578), to help students pass the California High School Exit Exam (AB 1482), to reduce fire threats from toxic chemicals in furniture (AB 706), to reduce teen pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases (AB 1511), and to foster solar energy (AB 1451) are all being suspended in the State Senate. Migden and Perata are even preventing passage of a bill (AB 1590) to raise millions for San Francisco city services, despite its support from such Migden constituents as the City and County of San Francisco, the SF Labor Council, and the SF Chamber of Commerce.

As Don Perata made clear to the San Francisco Chronicle on March 17th, he cares more about preventing Assemblymembers from challenging incumbent State Senators than he does about serving people’s needs. Now Perata and Migden have combined to fulfill the Senate Leader’s pledge to stop Mark Leno’s attempts to help the people of California, even to the point of directly damaging Carole Migden’s own constituents.

For the first time in his legislative career, Assembly member Mark Leno has seen his bills hit a roadblock in the Democratic-controlled State Senate. Most of these bills have a long list of supporters and little or no organizational opposition—yet Perata has assigned them to the Senate Appropriations or Revenue and Taxation Suspense files to ensure that Leno does not get credit for passing any legislation prior to the June 2008 Senate primary.

Incredibly, the Migden-Perata machinations even extend to denying San Francisco the right to vote on enacting a vehicular license fee. Even the SF Chamber of Commerce supports this legislation (AB 1590), which could bring an estimated $90 million dollars to San Francisco’s cash-strapped public transit system, help rebuild our public housing, improve city parks, and otherwise improve and enhance city services.

Perata argued that this vital bill should first be studied by a committee, which would then hold a January 2008 hearing on the issue. But San Francisco voters already expressed support for reinstating the license fee in November 2004, and a similar Leno bill passed the Legislature only to be vetoed by Schwarzenegger.

What further “study” of AB 1590 is needed?

It apparently meant nothing to Migden that San Francisco voters support the vehicular license fee in a state initiative, and that the City and County, the Labor Council, and Chamber of Commerce all support the measure.

It’s not just San Franciscans who should be alarmed at the Perata-Migden stalling of important legislation. The Los Angeles Times wrote an editorial on September 5 regarding Leno’s AB 706, which modifies a law that requires upholstery to include flame-retardant chemicals. According to the Times:

The problem is that the chemicals are toxic; the bill would change standards to bar use of those substances. This cost-neutral bill should be easy to pass, but it’s stuck in the Senate Appropriations Committee. It’s technically too late to move it to the floor, but the proposal is important enough for a rule waiver or one of the other maneuvers that lawmakers use all the time. (Emphasis added)

Why is this critical safety bill “stuck”? So that Perata and Migden can prevent Mark Leno from telling primary voters that he sponsored legislation to prevent furniture from causing house fires.

Unfortunately, AB 706 is not the only Leno bill whose attempt to increase health and safety has hit the Perata-Migden roadblock.

Leno’s AB 1358, the Complete Streets Act, would require planners of roadways to accommodate the needs of bicyclists, pedestrians, individuals with disabilities, and public transportation. Despite this bill’s co-sponsorship by the AARP and support from a huge statewide coalition of bicycle groups, Perata and Migden have kept the bill bottled up n the Senate Appropriations Committee.

The same goes for Leno’s AB 1472, which would authorize the California Department of Public Health to award grants to local health agencies and community organizations to ensure that land-use planning decisions benefit, and do not worsen, community health.

This measure, which could play a key role in fostering environmental justice, is backed by a diverse statewide coalition that includes both the California Medical Association and the California Nurses Association.

One would think that any bill that has both those groups on the same side would pass through the Legislature in a heartbeat, particularly since the American Cancer Society is also on board. But even though two communities represented by State Senator Carole Migden—the City and County of San Francisco and County of Marin—and Perata’s own Alameda County support AB 1472, the bill has been suspended to deny Leno a legislative victory.

There is something terribly, terribly wrong with this picture.

Californians, and San Franciscans in particular, are losing the benefit of important laws because a single state senator does not want her challenger to get any credit for their passage. Forget about democracy and holding politicians accountable: Perata and Migden believe that saving individual political careers is far more important than serving constituents’ needs.

My own sense is that the Perata-Migden strategy will backfire. When voters around the state learn about Perata’s misuse of his Senate power, they will be more likely to vote against the term-limits initiative in February, which would give Perata another four years.

This is on top of the backroom language change Perata inserted into the initiative to give him 14 years as a Senator when current state law authorizes only eight.

Migden has political problems that stopping Leno’s efforts to help his district will not erase. This includes her endangering the lives of fellow drivers on Highway 80, illegal transfer of $1 million in campaign funds, and her decision to leave a powerful appropriations post to work on Steve Westly’s 2006 gubernatorial campaign.

Given her political vulnerability, it is understandable that her Senate colleagues would want to come to her aid. But the way to help Migden is to get her bills passed, not by preventing her constituents from benefiting from Leno’s legislation.

The former San Francisco Giants manager, Dusty Baker, has become a solar pioneer in his (current) retirement. He’s adopted solar in a big way for his 8,000 square foot home outside of Sacramento. He has eliminated his $3,000/month electric bill with solar.

Former Cubs, Giants manager Dusty Baker leading busy life this year away from baseball

Strolling across his Northern California estate, Dusty Baker stops to pull weeds, checks out the solar paneling that provides energy to cool and heat his new home, and fixes the drip irrigation system in his vineyard.

He takes a quick breather on a rock at one of two meditation spots, where he likes to go at night to think.

Baker has had more than enough going on this year to take his mind off a disappointing departure from the Chicago Cubs last fall. Aside from a gig as a broadcaster with ESPN, his primary project has been finishing the custom-made, energy-efficient house outside Sacramento about a mile from a lake where he grew up swimming, fishing, hunting and camping.

Gone is the signature toothpick dangling from his mouth - as much a part of Baker’s baseball persona as the No. 12 jersey he wears while managing.

“No stress,” he says.

Yet that could come soon. The 58-year-old is eager to get back in the dugout and believes his best days as a skipper are ahead.

His contract was not renewed last fall after he spent four years managing the Cubs. In his final season, Chicago dealt with numerous injuries and finished with the worst record in the National League at 66-96. That’s after the Cubs came within five outs of reaching the World Series in his first year.

They replaced him with Lou Piniella. Baker also managed the San Francisco Giants for 10 years from 1993 through their World Series season of 2002.

“I’m pretty close,” the native Californian says of being ready to return to the field full-time. “This year’s been good. It has to be the right spot. People say, ‘Are you through?’ Heck, I’m only halfway to Bobby Cox and Tony La Russa. Chicago was tough. I learned from it. If you don’t learn, you’re not living. I learned a lot about people and a lot about myself. I was tough before. Nothing fazes me now.”

Baker is out of uniform for the first time since a brief stint as a stockbroker in 1987 after retiring from his 19-year playing career. He became a coach with San Francisco the following season.

While he takes monthly cross-country flights for ESPN, the three-time NL Manager of the Year has slept in his own bed more often than not.

“At least my home base is home,” he says.

He has enjoyed having more time with his wife, Melissa, and their 8-year-old son, Darren - not to mention some close friends who have helped make Baker’s nearly completed dream home a reality.

Solar strips line the top of his 4,000-square-foot workshop to heat and cool the 8,750-square-foot main house. The panels on the roof of Darren’s nearly completed batting cage, which will feature bleacher seats from ballparks where Baker played, heat a beautiful pool nearby.

This house has been in the works for years, practically since the days Baker and best friend and former high school teammate Dennis Kludt were teens and started discussing the idea of one day living in the area as adults. Kludt lives a couple of miles away and is now project manager for the house. Baker has a long-standing interest in energy and water issues and has mailed Kludt many articles about related topics.

“This is Mr. Solar - Dusty Solar Baker,” jokes Kevin Boedecker, the solar expert on the project.

The sprinkler system is solar-powered, too, and so is the backup system. Baker also earns credits when he puts energy back into the grid.

His electric bill would be upwards of $3,000 a month, but he will hardly hand over a cent come winter. And he expects to save money in the long run.

Baker will also be helping to market and promote the company, Solar Pro, that is doing the work on his house.

“I was really into it, to try to save power and be world conscious, and save money, too. I believe this is the wave of the future,” Baker says. “We thought of just about everything.”

And he’s not kidding.

Melissa got her wish to have a lavish living space for Bailey, an 11-year-old German shorthaired pointer. The pooch, Baker’s hunting partner, even has her own bathtub.

Not far from Bailey’s wing, Baker carefully removes the plastic covering from a large painting of Opus One wine - one of his favorites - to be hung on the wall across from the entry to his 1,300-bottle wine cellar.

On the opposite side of the house, he has a fitness room with weights, cardio equipment and steam room, as well as a hot tub right outside.

A large barbecue and patio area are complete with misters.

With the push of a button, Baker clicks on the spraying mist to offer a reprieve from the California heat.

“Darren loves this,” he says, “more than anything he loves this.”

Darren also has a basketball court and a pathway around the property to ride his bike.

Baker repeatedly bends to pick weeds while walking along, then stuffs them into an empty water bottle.

“I’m always pulling weeds,” he says.

Baker’s detached workshop features ample space for vehicles or a boat, and also has an office complete with a small kitchen, couches, surround sound and a TV. He touches a small control panel on the outside wall and music fills the entire building as Baker bounces to the beat and sings along.

“Everybody could use a mini clubhouse,” he says with a smile.

There are dozens of photos and sentimental paintings - like an original Dr. Seuss “Cat in the Hat” - he has collected during various trips to Hawaii, where he went when he found out he had prostate cancer. He underwent surgery for the illness in December 2001 and returned to lead the Giants to the World Series in ‘02.

That experience reminded him about keeping life in perspective as much as anything else.

The Bakers are keeping their Bay Area home in San Bruno and enjoy their time in San Francisco. The new house is only 20 minutes from Baker’s father.

Baker bought the nearly 4 1/2-acre lot almost five years ago and it was completely undeveloped - basically just dirt and weeds on a space formerly used for a horse stable.

Baker has been making his rounds at local sporting events. He was in the stands for the California football team’s season-opening win over Tennessee and for the Golden State Warriors’ playoffs. He’s seen the Oakland Athletics and attended NCAA men’s basketball at Arco Arena in Sacramento back in March. He participated in a goodwill trip promoting baseball in Ghana in February and then took Darren to Disneyland later that month.

Back home now, Baker has yet to put the finishing touches on an upstairs game and memorabilia room that will exhibit his trophies and other keepsakes from his days playing and managing.

“Baseball’s been great to me,” he said. “My house still has some baseball theme. It’s impossible not to.”

Now, he can hear the crack of the bat at a nearby school. The fields are just beyond one of his fences.

“I like hearing kids, the sound of kids,” he says. “It keeps you young.”

Still young enough, he hopes, to chase Cox and La Russa for years to come.

This is a great story about how a Southern California family cut their exorbitant electric bill - over $700 monthly - down to just $15/month. They added 50 PV panels for electricity production, switched their pool to solar heating, and installed solar powered lighting.

By Mekhalo Medina
KNBC/NBC News Channel

LOS ANGELES — A California family is sharing the secret of how they cut their whopping $700 electric bill down to just $15. The Keating’s pool is one of the big green changes the family made.

Solar panels now heat the pool. Water is pumped to the flat panels on the roof, then pushed back through tiny tubes. Solar expert Graham Owen installed them.

“It’s almost the equivalent of the garden hose sitting in your yard. Turn on the faucet and hot water comes out,” Owen explained.

The Keatings also put solar powered lights outdoors and swapped 60-watt bulbs in the chandelier for 2-watt bulbs.

The biggest change is on the roof. 50 solar panels turn the sun’s energy into electricity. They’re creating so much energy during the day their meter actually spins backwards.

“I couldn’t stop myself from going out and watching it spinning. I like gadgetry, so it’s the world’s biggest gadget,” said Kevin Keating.

They’re putting electricity back into the system and getting credit for it from their energy provider.

Last year’s bill for May and June was $730. This year, it was only 15.

The California Energy Commission says 28,000 homes in the state are now solar and more are on the way. Solar roof panels for an average home cost about $36,000. Solar panels for the pool are about $5,000. Financial incentives vary depending on your energy provider.

This is an interesting article at Forbes.com that features some pretty amazing solar-powered homes, and some interesting facts. Did you know that residential solar homes have tripled in the past 5 years, and that California is home to 73% of the nation’s solar homes? We live in a special state that, yet again, is leading the country in critical new initiatives. The California solar rebates are the most generous in the nation. However, these rebates will phase out gradually over time. Any day now the current reimbursement rate of $2.50/W of installed production capacity will drop to $2.20/W.

Stunning Solar Powered Homes
Matt Woolsey 08.16.07, 6:00 PM ET

Owners of solar-powered homes sleep easy all summer. And it’s only in part because they can keep their houses cool without paying obscenely large electricity bills.

Rather, by opting for a photovoltaic (PV) solar-power system, which relies on roof-top solar panels to convert sunlight directly into electricity, a homeowner can, depending on the time of year and the climate in which he lives, cover his monthly energy bill and in some cases, even sell surplus energy back to the grid.

This is due in large part to state and federal subsidies, which homeowners are increasingly embracing. Residential solar installations have tripled since 2002, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), a trade group for solar energy-related businesses.
In Pictures: Stunning Solar-Powered Homes

But installing a solar energy system adds up–in some cases, capital costs equal just under a decade’s worth of household energy costs. And silicon, the primary material used in converting sunlight to energy, is expensive. What’s more, most utilities cap the amount of juice they’ll buy from residential suppliers at around two kilowatts. In most areas, this is enough to power a 2,000-square-foot home and sell a surplus back to the grid at peak energy points. Anything larger than that might become less cost-effective.

Environmentally Friendly Extras
Still, many find going green pays off. One such boon is the federal Energy Policy Act of 2005. It grants a one-time 30%-of-cost tax credit to homeowners installing photovoltaic solar-power panels.

Additional incentives are available on the state level. Got a home in New Jersey, Tennessee or California? You’re in luck. All offer hefty bonuses for homeowners using solar energy.

“The vast majority of the solar PV installations occurring in the U.S. at present are in California and New Jersey,” says Ryan Wiser, author of the Solar Energy Industries Association’s 2006 Solar Energy Report. “Many other states also have aggressive programs to encourage solar photovoltaics, but the results in California and New Jersey probably deserve particular note.”

California’s 2006 Solar Initiative provides $800 million in rebates over 11 years to homeowners using PV solar systems, and, upon its passing, called for 500,000 new-home solar systems to be included in the state’s net metering program, which allows homeowners to sell energy back to the grid.

The results thus far? Sunny California is perhaps the perfect place to invest in solar power. The SEIA reports that 73% of new solar systems installed nationwide last year were in California.

New Jersey’s program offers scaled rebates based on wattage capacity, meaning that the more juice your system can generate, the more the subsidy is worth. There, the number of residential solar power-generated systems accounted for 13% of those newly installed nationwide. Not bad for a small state. Oh, and Jersey added five times as much solar wattage last year as neighboring New York.

Further south, the Tennessee Valley Authority offers a one-time $500 disbursement and 15 cent-per-kilowatt payment for residences generating surplus power. As a point of reference, the retail outfits that buy from the TVA charge customers about 7.5 cents for power, meaning that if it’s a sunny summer in the South, a solar-powered home can net a homeowner a decent profit in what effectively amounts to a subsidy.

Another strategy states are implementing to increase solar-energy use is to incentivize the building of solar systems directly. Austin Energy, a community-owned utility in Austin, Texas, offers low-interest, no-fee loans up to $20,000 for the purchase and installation of PV solar systems, payable over 10 years with no prepayment penalties.

Earth-Friendly Economics
It should be noted that most solar-powered houses do not completely power a home through all seasons, and are usually only part of an energy generating system, which often includes geothermal energy systems. To achieve a net-zero rating, a home must use less energy during trough energy generation months than the surplus it creates in peak months. This is difficult to do.

It is also difficult for residents in some areas to gain any kind of benefit from surplus solar power. Ten states do not require utilities to offer net-metering to customers–Missouri and South Carolina are among them–and others, like Nevada, do not require utilities to compensate customer-generated energy.

In Pictures: Stunning Solar Powered Homes

Last week the House took a huge step to encourage solar electricity and other renewable forms of energy by passing two important bills:

H.R. 2776, Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act of 2007
H.R. 3221, New Direction for Energy Independence, National Security, and Consumer Protection Act

HR 2776 is important for anyone considering solar for their home. It removes the cap on the Federal solar rebate that currently limits rebates to $2,000. For a typical 2.5KW residential system this could mean a Federal tax rebate of over $7,000 instead of $2,000.

The bill needs to be reconciled with the Senate version before going to the President for final signing. Of course, President Bush is threatening to veto this important legislation. The official Administration position is:

The stated goal of energy reform by the new majority in the House of Representatives was “to achieve energy independence, strengthen national security, grow our economy and create jobs, lower energy prices, and begin to address global warming.” The Administration is disappointed that the House has produced no such legislation, and instead is planning to consider H.R. 2776 and H.R. 3221, two bills that are not serious attempts to increase our energy security or address high energy costs. In fact, the combination of these two bills will result in less domestic oil and gas production, higher taxes to disadvantage a single targeted industry, and duplicative energy efficiency and R&D efforts that are largely underway already. - more

For a complete review see Solar Energy Industries Association.

The following provisions for solar energy can be found in H.R. 2776 and H.R. 3221:

Solar Provisions in H.R. 2776, the Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act of 2007

Provides an eight-year extension of the existing 30 percent Investment Tax Credit for businesses under Section 48 of the tax code

Provides the ability for corporate and personal filers to claim the Investment Tax Credit against the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT)

Removes the prohibition barring utilities from using the section 48 Investment Tax Credit

Provides no extension of the existing 30 percent Investment Tax Credit for homeowners under Section 25 of the tax code, but eliminates the existing $2,000 maximum dollar limitation

Provides up to $2.4 billion in bonding authority for the issuance of Clean Renewable Energy Bonds

Solar Provisions in H.R. 3221, the New Direction for Energy Independence, National Security, and Consumer Protection Act

Title III - Small Business Committee Sec. 3005: Provides grants, subject to appropriation, and authorizes technical assistance to small businesses to assist them in evaluating the suitability of using solar energy resources.

Title IV - Science and Technology Committee Sec. 4301- 4308: The Solar Energy Research and Advancement Act of 2007, provides funds, subject to appropriation, to support the research, development, and commercial application of solar energy technologies. Special emphasis is placed on concentrating solar power thermal storage research, solar lighting and cooling and advanced photovoltaic technology development.

Title VII - Natural Resources Committee
Sec. 7302: Directs the Bureau of Reclamation to inventory lands under its jurisdiction for suitability for solar energy development projects.

Sec. 7304: Establishes a Strategic Solar Reserve Program that seeks to identify lands under the Bureau of Land Management’s jurisdiction that can accommodate up to 25 GW of solar energy development. Provides favorable terms and conditions for permitting, leasing and site identification.

Title IX - Energy and Commerce Committee
Sec. 9072 - 9075: Authorizes the Department of Energy, subject to appropriation, to assist state, county, local government, schools, universities, airports and other qualifying entities, to provide technical assistance to increase the deployment of solar energy systems.

Sec. 9086: Authorizes 25 year federal power purchase agreements for solar energy (current maximum duration is 10 years).

Sec. 9321- 9328: Authorizes heightened cooperation between the U.S. and Israel on innovative energy technologies, including solar.

Adopted Amendments

Renewable Electricity Standard (RES) — Requires electric suppliers, other than governmental entities and rural electric cooperatives, to provide 15 percent of their electricity using renewable energy resources by the year 2020. It would allow 4 percent of the requirement to be satisfied with electricity efficiency measures. For distributed generation (electric energy generated by a renewable energy resource at an on-site eligible facility, used to offset part or all of the customer’s requirements for electric energy), including distributed solar, the Secretary of Energy shall issue three renewable energy credits to such customer for each kilowatt hour generated.

Solar Energy Industries Research and Promotion Board — Creates a Solar Energy Industries Research and Promotion Board to increase consumer awareness nationwide of solar energy options and appropriate certifications. The solar program would be funded entirely by a small portion of industry revenues. No appropriations are authorized.