Sunday, August 14, 2011
The Tea Party Embraces Local Energy Efficiency Financing
(Legal Planet) While Congress flailed during the debt ceiling deliberations, Republicans Nan Hayworth (NY) and Dan Lungren (CA) co-sponsored the PACE Assessment Protection Act of 2011, along with 12 other Republicans and 11 Democrats. The proposed law tells FHFA to rescind its policy of withholding mortgage insurance for residential properties with PACE assessments, provided that the PACE arrangements meet certain standards. These standards include the use of a locally approved contractor, a home energy audit or feasibility study by a certified auditor prior to the PACE deal, and eligibility limited to property owners who have not been delinquent for at least the past three years on property taxes, among other safeguards.
Why would a Tea Party-supported member of Congress like Hayworth sponsor this bill? Much of it has to do with preserving local control and staving off federal intervention into local matters, typically a Republican ideal. But the benefits go beyond philosophy or political structure: energy efficiency retrofits save building owners money, create much-needed construction jobs, and clean our air. And they don’t require federal spending, since these measures pay for themselves over time. Certainly after the light bulb fiasco that Dan wrote about, it’s nice to see that some energy efficiency measures pass muster in a Republican-controlled House.
--more--
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Its time to stop the over-reach by Fannie and Freddie
- 07/20/11 12:05 PM ET
Benjamin Franklin established the nation’s first special assessment district when he created the Union Fire Company of Philadelphia, a volunteer fire department. Today there are more than 37,000 special districts in the United States. Local governments use them to pay for everything from sewer systems to sidewalks to mosquito abatement — all in response to important community concerns.
In the last two years, 27 states and the District of Columbia have passed laws allowing their local governments to use existing assessment authority (also called special improvement districts) to help homeowners and businesses finance energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements. These laws, commonly called Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) laws, were hailed by Scientific American as one of the top 20 ways to change the world.
The idea of PACE is simple. It uses a traditional municipal finance tool to help property owners pay for the upfront cost associated with energy-saving improvements. Property owners then pay for the improvements on their property taxes over the course of up to 20 years. PACE has rapidly gained popularity because it solves a big problem — by eliminating the high upfront cost, it removes the biggest barrier to unlocking significant new investment in clean energy.
Because the assessment is voluntary, only property owners who can afford it sign up. And, like other tax assessments, it stays with the property upon sale. So if you use PACE to install an energy-efficient furnace or put solar panels on your roof, but sell your home, the new owner will assume the property tax assessments — and get the benefit of the lower utility bills. It’s not just a win-win situation, but win-win-win: Homeowners get the benefit of lower utility bills; workers in the stagnating construction industry get jobs; and the nation gets the benefit of increased energy efficiency and reduced energy costs.
--More--
Benjamin Franklin established the nation’s first special assessment district when he created the Union Fire Company of Philadelphia, a volunteer fire department. Today there are more than 37,000 special districts in the United States. Local governments use them to pay for everything from sewer systems to sidewalks to mosquito abatement — all in response to important community concerns.
In the last two years, 27 states and the District of Columbia have passed laws allowing their local governments to use existing assessment authority (also called special improvement districts) to help homeowners and businesses finance energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements. These laws, commonly called Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) laws, were hailed by Scientific American as one of the top 20 ways to change the world.
The idea of PACE is simple. It uses a traditional municipal finance tool to help property owners pay for the upfront cost associated with energy-saving improvements. Property owners then pay for the improvements on their property taxes over the course of up to 20 years. PACE has rapidly gained popularity because it solves a big problem — by eliminating the high upfront cost, it removes the biggest barrier to unlocking significant new investment in clean energy.
Because the assessment is voluntary, only property owners who can afford it sign up. And, like other tax assessments, it stays with the property upon sale. So if you use PACE to install an energy-efficient furnace or put solar panels on your roof, but sell your home, the new owner will assume the property tax assessments — and get the benefit of the lower utility bills. It’s not just a win-win situation, but win-win-win: Homeowners get the benefit of lower utility bills; workers in the stagnating construction industry get jobs; and the nation gets the benefit of increased energy efficiency and reduced energy costs.
--More--
Friday, July 15, 2011
Jefferson City Creates Energy Board
KBIA --Posted Monday, January 10th, 2011 at 1:02pm
Less than a week after announcing the creation of a Clean Energy Development Board, Jefferson City officials say they’ve already received requests from citizens wanting to begin energy efficiency projects.
Jefferson City officials have created the first Clean Energy Development Board in the state. The board will help citizens and businesses fund renewable energy projects through the Property Assessed Clean Energy Act, or PACE. City officials hope PACE will encourage people to increase the efficiency of their homes.
Although the Clean Energy Development Board is still in its infancy, city officials say they’ve already received more requests than they can process from citizens hoping to increase energy efficiency in their homes. Now, their offices aren’t overloaded with inquiries. It’s just that the Clean Energy Development Board is not completely set up at this time. But once the Board is fully in place, Jefferson City, city attorney Nathan Nickolaus says officials hope the city can lead others in the state to develop similar programs.
� “For it to work, it can’t just be in Jefferson City because eventually everybody who needed those kinds of things in Jefferson City would have them. You really kind of need new people coming into the system all the time. It’s designed to spread out from Jefferson City into all the surrounding counties.”
Now, energy efficient projects can be expensive. But helping people pay these costs is pretty much what officials say the board will do. People can purchase energy efficient appliances and add that payment to their property tax rather than paying for it all up front. Property owners then have up to 20 years to repay the taxes. Nickolaus says the board will eventually be self funding. He likens the way it works to a home mortgage.
� “The board will borrow money to pay the contractors who do the work, and then they will be repaid through the property taxes coming in. When they get a large enough pool of these contracts, they will refund those with a bond issue.”�
And if you move after installing new appliances, whoever buys your home takes over the payments. Nickolaus says not only will this increase the value of people’s homes, but it will also increase the use of energy improvements.
Every project that’s approved must show a cost-benefit analysis. More energy must be saved than the project costs. Nickolaus says 24 other states currently use the PACE program.
Friday, January 7, 2011
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Enviros Claim Feds Pulled Clean-Energy Plug
Two federal agencies are trying to sink Property Assessed Clean Energy programs, which finance energy-efficiency changes for homes and businesses, the Natural Resources Defense Council claims in Federal Court. The NRDC says it has spent 2 years supporting development of PACE programs, but the Federal Housing Finance Authority and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency issued misguided directives this summer that could stop the programs in their tracks.
"Defendants' actions, which have the effect of terminating existing PACE programs and curtailing the development of new PACE initiatives, will significantly set back efforts to address air pollution and global warming pollution from the electric generation sector," according to the complaint.
Energy efficiency is important to combating global warming, making the electric grid more reliable, and reducing consumers' energy bills, but Americans need financing so they can afford to pay for better energy or to retrofit their homes and businesses, the NRDC says.
"If PACE programs were to achieve a 3 percent penetration rate nationwide over the next decade, 3.3 million homes would be retrofitted, resulting in approximately 320 million metric tons of avoided carbon dioxide emissions," according to the complaint. "Assuming an average job cost of $15,000, these retrofits would also result in just under $50 billion of construction activity."
The NRDC claims that PACE projects such as installing new windows or improving insulation can increase property value in the long term and bring many short-term benefits, such as decreasing a building's energy bills, increasing a property owner's cash flow and reducing the risk of default and foreclosure.
--more
"Defendants' actions, which have the effect of terminating existing PACE programs and curtailing the development of new PACE initiatives, will significantly set back efforts to address air pollution and global warming pollution from the electric generation sector," according to the complaint.
Energy efficiency is important to combating global warming, making the electric grid more reliable, and reducing consumers' energy bills, but Americans need financing so they can afford to pay for better energy or to retrofit their homes and businesses, the NRDC says.
"If PACE programs were to achieve a 3 percent penetration rate nationwide over the next decade, 3.3 million homes would be retrofitted, resulting in approximately 320 million metric tons of avoided carbon dioxide emissions," according to the complaint. "Assuming an average job cost of $15,000, these retrofits would also result in just under $50 billion of construction activity."
The NRDC claims that PACE projects such as installing new windows or improving insulation can increase property value in the long term and bring many short-term benefits, such as decreasing a building's energy bills, increasing a property owner's cash flow and reducing the risk of default and foreclosure.
--more
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Sunday, October 10, 2010
NRDC Sues Federal Housing Regulators for Blocking Affordable Clean Energy Projects for Homeowners
NEW YORK, N.Y. (October 6, 2010) – Federal housing regulators must stop obstructing programs that make energy efficiency upgrades and renewable energy projects affordable for American homeowners, according to a lawsuit filed today by the Natural Resources Defense Council.
“Federal housing regulators are standing in the way of programs that make clean energy projects affordable for homeowners and lower electricity bills,” said Katherine Kennedy, Energy Counsel at NRDC. “It defies common sense that the federal government is blocking programs that could create jobs, jumpstart our economy, put money in homeowners’ pockets, and fight climate change at the same time. Instead of shutting them down, the federal government should help these programs grow.”
NRDC filed the lawsuit in federal district court in the Southern District of New York against the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which regulates government sponsored mortgage buyers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which regulates national banks. The agencies have halted clean energy financing programs—called Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) programs— that are already off the ground in California, Colorado and New York, and have been adopted in 20 other states and the District of Columbia.
NRDC Complaint
“Federal housing regulators are standing in the way of programs that make clean energy projects affordable for homeowners and lower electricity bills,” said Katherine Kennedy, Energy Counsel at NRDC. “It defies common sense that the federal government is blocking programs that could create jobs, jumpstart our economy, put money in homeowners’ pockets, and fight climate change at the same time. Instead of shutting them down, the federal government should help these programs grow.”
NRDC filed the lawsuit in federal district court in the Southern District of New York against the Federal Housing Finance Agency, which regulates government sponsored mortgage buyers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, which regulates national banks. The agencies have halted clean energy financing programs—called Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) programs— that are already off the ground in California, Colorado and New York, and have been adopted in 20 other states and the District of Columbia.
NRDC Complaint
Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program on the ropes
National Association of Counties: County News
By Julie Ufner
ASSOCIATE LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR
As the clock ticks to the end of the 111th Congress, many local governments are anxious about the fate of the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program.
In July, NACo members passed a resolution at NACo’s Annual Meeting to support PACE programs. Since then, NACo has been lobbying with the National League of Cities and the U.S. Conference of Mayors in support of PACE programs.
READ MORE
By Julie Ufner
ASSOCIATE LEGISLATIVE DIRECTOR
As the clock ticks to the end of the 111th Congress, many local governments are anxious about the fate of the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program.
In July, NACo members passed a resolution at NACo’s Annual Meeting to support PACE programs. Since then, NACo has been lobbying with the National League of Cities and the U.S. Conference of Mayors in support of PACE programs.
READ MORE
Monday, July 19, 2010
A Leg Up for PACE Programs
Bill Would End GSE Roadblocks
(Bond Buyer) Monday, July 19, 2010
WASHINGTON — Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., and 29 other members of Congress have introduced legislation that would prevent Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from stifling state programs that allow localities to sell bonds to finance energy-efficient upgrades made by homeowners.
The legislation follows a suit California attorney general and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown filed against Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Housing Finance Agency, arguing they are violating state law by blocking the programs.
The programs, dubbed property assessed clean energy, or PACE, programs, have come under fire from the mortgage titans and their regulator, the FHFA, which argue they make the underlying mortgages on participating homes too risky for the two government-sponsored enterprises.
READ MORE
(Bond Buyer) Monday, July 19, 2010
WASHINGTON — Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif., and 29 other members of Congress have introduced legislation that would prevent Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac from stifling state programs that allow localities to sell bonds to finance energy-efficient upgrades made by homeowners.
The legislation follows a suit California attorney general and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown filed against Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Housing Finance Agency, arguing they are violating state law by blocking the programs.
The programs, dubbed property assessed clean energy, or PACE, programs, have come under fire from the mortgage titans and their regulator, the FHFA, which argue they make the underlying mortgages on participating homes too risky for the two government-sponsored enterprises.
READ MORE
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Byron DeLear of Missouri Association of Accredited Energy Professionals speaks of PACE
Gov. Jay Nixon signed a bill on Monday enabling Property Assesses Clean Energy (PACE) programs, which allow cities and counties to issue bonds to help home owners finance energy efficiency upgrades or solar panel installation. Money from the bond sales is lent to property owners, who repay it over a period of up to 20 years through special property tax assessments.
PACE laws have been adopted in 22 states as a way to cut energy use and create jobs by making it easier for homeowners to cut energy use and shrink utility bills.
In Missouri, energy efficiency advocates acknowledge the uncertainty surrounding PACE but are working to roll out programs anyway, hoping the conflict is resolved.
On Friday, energy advocacy group Renew Missouri held a PACE implementation training conference in Columbia for about 100 energy auditors, solar installers and local government officials.
"Our view is that these concerns and problems will be resolved," said Byron DeLear, a founding partner of Energy Equity Funding LLC, a company that hopes to administer PACE programs in the state.
DeLear also heads the Missouri Association of Accredited Energy Professionals, a year-old state association of energy auditors and contractors. MAAEP helped push PACE legislation in Jefferson City and has a lot riding on the success of the programs.
PACE is expected to spur millions of dollars in efficiency and renewable energy upgrades across the state. That could mean hundreds of new jobs for energy auditors, contractors and home remodelers.
DeLear projects that 80 percent of PACE loans in Missouri will be used to finance energy efficiency projects averaging about $5,000. The rest will also incorporate renewable energy systems such as solar panels with those projects averaging about $25,000. Statewide, the average PACE loan would be about $9,000, he estimates.
READ MORE
PACE laws have been adopted in 22 states as a way to cut energy use and create jobs by making it easier for homeowners to cut energy use and shrink utility bills.
In Missouri, energy efficiency advocates acknowledge the uncertainty surrounding PACE but are working to roll out programs anyway, hoping the conflict is resolved.
On Friday, energy advocacy group Renew Missouri held a PACE implementation training conference in Columbia for about 100 energy auditors, solar installers and local government officials.
"Our view is that these concerns and problems will be resolved," said Byron DeLear, a founding partner of Energy Equity Funding LLC, a company that hopes to administer PACE programs in the state.
DeLear also heads the Missouri Association of Accredited Energy Professionals, a year-old state association of energy auditors and contractors. MAAEP helped push PACE legislation in Jefferson City and has a lot riding on the success of the programs.
PACE is expected to spur millions of dollars in efficiency and renewable energy upgrades across the state. That could mean hundreds of new jobs for energy auditors, contractors and home remodelers.
DeLear projects that 80 percent of PACE loans in Missouri will be used to finance energy efficiency projects averaging about $5,000. The rest will also incorporate renewable energy systems such as solar panels with those projects averaging about $25,000. Statewide, the average PACE loan would be about $9,000, he estimates.
READ MORE
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Congress tells Fannie and Freddie to support clean energy programs
Written by Office of Congressman Mike Thompson
Saturday, 17 July 2010
WASHINGTON, DC – On Thursday Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA) was joined by 29 other members of Congress in introducing legislation to protect clean energy initiatives that are important to homeowners in California and the rest of the country.
The PACE Assessment Protection Act of 2010 would order lenders to adopt standards that support Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) programs, rather than stymie green energy efforts.
“PACE programs are an important part of the push to create a green economy and reduce our reliance on foreign oil,” said Congressman Thompson. “They create jobs, and are an exciting way for homeowners to reduce their energy bills while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This is especially important in California, which has already taken significant steps to ensure that PACE programs are available to 70 percent of Californians by the end of 2010. And our district has been a national leader in getting these programs up and running – lending institutions should not interfere with these great green energy programs.”
MORE
Bill Summary & Status - 111th Congress (2009 - 2010) - H.R.5766
Title:
To ensure that the underwriting standards of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac facilitate the use of property assessed clean energy programs to finance the installation of renewable energy and energy efficiency improvements.
Sponsor: Rep Thompson, Mike
[CA-1] (introduced 7/15/2010)
Cosponsors
(29)
Latest Major Action:
7/15/2010 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
Thompson Bill Re FHFA 7-15-10
Saturday, 17 July 2010
WASHINGTON, DC – On Thursday Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA) was joined by 29 other members of Congress in introducing legislation to protect clean energy initiatives that are important to homeowners in California and the rest of the country.
The PACE Assessment Protection Act of 2010 would order lenders to adopt standards that support Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) programs, rather than stymie green energy efforts.
“PACE programs are an important part of the push to create a green economy and reduce our reliance on foreign oil,” said Congressman Thompson. “They create jobs, and are an exciting way for homeowners to reduce their energy bills while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This is especially important in California, which has already taken significant steps to ensure that PACE programs are available to 70 percent of Californians by the end of 2010. And our district has been a national leader in getting these programs up and running – lending institutions should not interfere with these great green energy programs.”
MORE
Bill Summary & Status - 111th Congress (2009 - 2010) - H.R.5766
Title:
To ensure that the underwriting standards of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac facilitate the use of property assessed clean energy programs to finance the installation of renewable energy and energy efficiency improvements.
Sponsor: Rep Thompson, Mike
[CA-1] (introduced 7/15/2010)
Cosponsors
(29)
Latest Major Action:
7/15/2010 Referred to House committee. Status: Referred to the House Committee on Financial Services.
Thompson Bill Re FHFA 7-15-10
PACE funding workshop attracts statewide attendance
Property Assessed Clean Energy funding workshop attracts statewide attendance
Friday, July 16, 2010
COLUMBIA — Representatives from 19 municipalities gathered to learn how to make Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) funding a reality in Missouri.
The PACE workshop drew more than 80 Missourians to Columbia on Friday. Jason Hughes of Renew Missouri, an organization focused on promoting renewable energy in Missouri and the event’s sponsor, was expecting 50.
The workshop follows Gov. Jay Nixon’s signing of a bill to allow the use of PACE financing systems in Missouri.
Attendees came from around the state to express the diverse needs of their communities.
Serving Seniors
Rosalind Williams, Director of Planning and Development for Ferguson, said her community is focused on the needs of it’s senior citizens. Making houses not only more comfortable, but cheaper to live in, encourages seniors to not move out of Ferguson, she said.
Williams said senior citizens aren’t an attractive demographic to most lenders, but PACE financing would allow them to afford adding value to their homes.
No Cherry Picking
John May of Creve Coeur wants to be sure PACE benefits everyone, not just the wealthy municipalities.
One proposal he saw for a PACE program “cherry-picked” the wealthier counties of St. Louis and St. Charles and avoided the poor.
“I got a little hot,” May said after hearing that proposal.
May also cautioned against rushing into any financing system without being sure of the risks. Believing in safety without surety led to the recession and the Deepwater Horizon disaster, he said.
Fannie May and Freddie Mac oppose PACE funding. They believe that the the stipulations of PACE financing could displace mortgages the lenders hold.
Their opposition has halted progress on PACE across the country, but is receiving heavy criticism.
READ ARTICLE
Friday, July 16, 2010
COLUMBIA — Representatives from 19 municipalities gathered to learn how to make Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) funding a reality in Missouri.
The PACE workshop drew more than 80 Missourians to Columbia on Friday. Jason Hughes of Renew Missouri, an organization focused on promoting renewable energy in Missouri and the event’s sponsor, was expecting 50.
The workshop follows Gov. Jay Nixon’s signing of a bill to allow the use of PACE financing systems in Missouri.
Attendees came from around the state to express the diverse needs of their communities.
Serving Seniors
Rosalind Williams, Director of Planning and Development for Ferguson, said her community is focused on the needs of it’s senior citizens. Making houses not only more comfortable, but cheaper to live in, encourages seniors to not move out of Ferguson, she said.
Williams said senior citizens aren’t an attractive demographic to most lenders, but PACE financing would allow them to afford adding value to their homes.
No Cherry Picking
John May of Creve Coeur wants to be sure PACE benefits everyone, not just the wealthy municipalities.
One proposal he saw for a PACE program “cherry-picked” the wealthier counties of St. Louis and St. Charles and avoided the poor.
“I got a little hot,” May said after hearing that proposal.
May also cautioned against rushing into any financing system without being sure of the risks. Believing in safety without surety led to the recession and the Deepwater Horizon disaster, he said.
Fannie May and Freddie Mac oppose PACE funding. They believe that the the stipulations of PACE financing could displace mortgages the lenders hold.
Their opposition has halted progress on PACE across the country, but is receiving heavy criticism.
READ ARTICLE
Thursday, July 15, 2010
California s Brown Sues GSEs Over PACE
(Bond Buyer) Thursday, July 15, 2010
WASHINGTON — California Attorney General Jerry Brown is suing mortgage titans Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as well as their regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, for effectively killing programs that allow the state’s localities to issue bonds to finance energy-efficient upgrades made by homeowners.
Brown, a Democratic gubernatorial candidate, filed the suit yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, urging the court to issue an order restraining or enjoining the agencies from refusing to participate in these property assessed clean energy, or PACE, programs, which he insisted are permitted under state law.
The PACE programs were to receive about $150 million of seed money under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act enacted last year. But they generally skidded to a halt earlier this month after the FHFA directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to tighten their underwriting standards for the PACE programs, warning they “pose significant safety and soundness concerns” and “disrupt a fragile housing finance market and long-standing lending priorities."
READ ARTICLE
CA Fhfa Suit
WASHINGTON — California Attorney General Jerry Brown is suing mortgage titans Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as well as their regulator, the Federal Housing Finance Agency, for effectively killing programs that allow the state’s localities to issue bonds to finance energy-efficient upgrades made by homeowners.
Brown, a Democratic gubernatorial candidate, filed the suit yesterday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, urging the court to issue an order restraining or enjoining the agencies from refusing to participate in these property assessed clean energy, or PACE, programs, which he insisted are permitted under state law.
The PACE programs were to receive about $150 million of seed money under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act enacted last year. But they generally skidded to a halt earlier this month after the FHFA directed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to tighten their underwriting standards for the PACE programs, warning they “pose significant safety and soundness concerns” and “disrupt a fragile housing finance market and long-standing lending priorities."
READ ARTICLE
CA Fhfa Suit
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Brown Fights to Preserve Job-Creating Clean Energy Program
SAN DIEGO - Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today filed a lawsuit against mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for blocking an innovative California clean energy program that was designed to create tens of thousands of jobs, promote energy independence and lower utility bills.
"As the nation struggles through the worst recession in modern times, California is taking action in federal court to stop the regulatory strangulation of the state's grass-roots program that is spreading across the country," said Brown.
The PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) program stimulates the economy and promotes energy independence by assisting homeowners and small businesses in securing funding to make their properties more energy efficient. Property owners repay the costs of energy improvements through assessments spread out over a decade or more. Under California law, these costs are classified as tax assessments.
Ignoring California law, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have effectively shut down the program by wrongly characterizing PACE assessments as loans that must be subordinate to their own mortgages. The Federal Housing Finance Agency affirmed Fannie and Freddie's decision on July 6 over the objections of Attorney General Brown and congressional leaders.
For California, the stakes are high. Almost half the counties in California have developed PACE programs or plan to start one. The mortgage giants' actions have stopped these programs dead in their tracks, destroying job creation, stifling energy independence and hampering California's economic recovery. Clean energy companies have had to lay off workers, and California risks losing more than $100 million in federal stimulus money.
"Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac received enormous federal bailouts," Brown said, "but now they're throwing up impermeable barriers to bank lending that creates jobs, stimulates the economy and boosts clean energy."
One example of the effects of this: San Diego planned to launch a PACE program this summer but it has now been suspended indefinitely, leaving more than 100 people trained in energy retrofits without jobs.
"I believe that the PACE program is critical to stimulating our local and statewide economy," said San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders. "I'm glad to see this lawsuit filed so that this novel program can continue."
In his lawsuit, Brown asks the court to apply California law, require Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to recognize PACE assessments for what they are, and allow PACE to move California's economy forward.
"As the nation struggles through the worst recession in modern times, California is taking action in federal court to stop the regulatory strangulation of the state's grass-roots program that is spreading across the country," said Brown.
The PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) program stimulates the economy and promotes energy independence by assisting homeowners and small businesses in securing funding to make their properties more energy efficient. Property owners repay the costs of energy improvements through assessments spread out over a decade or more. Under California law, these costs are classified as tax assessments.
Ignoring California law, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have effectively shut down the program by wrongly characterizing PACE assessments as loans that must be subordinate to their own mortgages. The Federal Housing Finance Agency affirmed Fannie and Freddie's decision on July 6 over the objections of Attorney General Brown and congressional leaders.
For California, the stakes are high. Almost half the counties in California have developed PACE programs or plan to start one. The mortgage giants' actions have stopped these programs dead in their tracks, destroying job creation, stifling energy independence and hampering California's economic recovery. Clean energy companies have had to lay off workers, and California risks losing more than $100 million in federal stimulus money.
"Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac received enormous federal bailouts," Brown said, "but now they're throwing up impermeable barriers to bank lending that creates jobs, stimulates the economy and boosts clean energy."
One example of the effects of this: San Diego planned to launch a PACE program this summer but it has now been suspended indefinitely, leaving more than 100 people trained in energy retrofits without jobs.
"I believe that the PACE program is critical to stimulating our local and statewide economy," said San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders. "I'm glad to see this lawsuit filed so that this novel program can continue."
In his lawsuit, Brown asks the court to apply California law, require Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to recognize PACE assessments for what they are, and allow PACE to move California's economy forward.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Missouri governor signs bills on energy efficiency
From the governor's office:
House Bill 1692 contains numerous provisions, including one to spur energy efficiency and conservation through the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program. This lets cities and counties issue bonds and provide financing for all upfront costs of energy efficient upgrades, renewable energy upgrades and energy audits for homes and businesses. Those upgrades can be costly, and this assistance will help many projects move forward. The bill was supported by a broad range of groups including utilities, consumer advocates and environmental groups.
House Bill 1692 contains numerous provisions, including one to spur energy efficiency and conservation through the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program. This lets cities and counties issue bonds and provide financing for all upfront costs of energy efficient upgrades, renewable energy upgrades and energy audits for homes and businesses. Those upgrades can be costly, and this assistance will help many projects move forward. The bill was supported by a broad range of groups including utilities, consumer advocates and environmental groups.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
PACE Programs On Hold - Bond Buyer Article
The Bond Buyer is the paper of record for the bond market. The article presents a very good view of what should be expected in the marketplace. This gives the reader a sense that PACE will continue only if prudent underwriting practices are followed.
Regretably, the folks who were instrumental in getting the initial PACE programs started were not mindful of the protections desired and required by the GSE community.
Note the last paragraph. It appears to give a glimmer of hope that there may be a path back from the brink.
SEE ARTICLE HERE
Regretably, the folks who were instrumental in getting the initial PACE programs started were not mindful of the protections desired and required by the GSE community.
Note the last paragraph. It appears to give a glimmer of hope that there may be a path back from the brink.
SEE ARTICLE HERE
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