About clean energy communities coordinators

To help governments fulfill the high-impact actions, expert guidance is provided by Clean Energy Communities Coordinators, at no cost. The Coordinators are funded by NYSERDA and based at regional planning organizations that have long-standing relationships with local governments. Their services provide meeting with municipal staff, answering questions, preparing LED street light cost-benefit reports, providing assistance with software for tracking municipal energy use, and identifying grants for electric vehicles and charging infrastructure. 
 

Clean energy communities program 

The Clean Energy Communities program offers online toolkits for each of the high-impact actions, step-by-step guides, calculators, case studies, and model language that communities can incorporate into legislation. Having this level of insight collected with the CRM software provides analysis to better understand the pipeline of high-impact actions and  needs. NYSERDA has employed a wide range of data analytics and visualization to help target program resources.These toolkits ensure clean energy programs will continue after funding is expended. It has three months to submit a proposal for use of the grant. NYSERDA evaluates proposals to ensure a sound approach; reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions; transfer knowledge to the broader region and state; are innovative and replicable; and leverage public and private dollars and/or generate economic development benefits. More than 100 grants have been awarded for projects that include converting street lights to LED, installing solar on municipal buildings, purchasing electric vehicles, and making energy upgrades to wastewater treatment facilities. 
 

About the program 

The  program is a three-year initiative with the capacity to award $16 million in grants to local communities. It’s supported by an additional five-year, $9 million contract for the network of Clean Energy Community Coordinators who will meet with municipal staff, to provide technical assistance, answer questions, prepare reports, and identify additional grant opportunities.

Clean-energy actions completed the program include:

243,978 street lights converted to LED
612 electric vehicles deployed
670 electric vehicle charging points installed
357 municipal officials trained in Energy Code enforcement
192 laws passed to track and report the energy use in municipal buildings
215 communities have streamlined the permitting process for local solar projects

The Clean Energy Communities program is replicables in other states and has practical steps to resolve their energy challenges. While the Clean Energy Communities program is based around high-impact actions that address the needs of New York jurisdictions, the program design could easily be adapted to include different high-impact actions applicable to other locations. They’re a recipient of a 2018 “State Leadership in Clean Energy Award,” presented by the Clean Energy States Alliance (CESA).  

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