A solar project for three Culver City schools that is slated to be completed later this year and there soon may be an unexpected revenue source available that could help offset some of the costs of outfitting the remaining school buildings if the school board chooses to do so.
Gov. Jerry Brown announced last month that there would be a surplus in the state budget this year and together with the passage of Propositions 30 and 39, education funding would again become a top priority.
Currently, California ranks near the bottom in how much a state spends on education.
Both propositions were approved by the voters in November.
Prop. 30 raised the state sales tax rate to 7.50% and will allocate funding from the proceeds of the increased levy to K-12 schools and community colleges. It also imposes higher taxes on those earning more than $250,000 annually.
The latter ballot initiative mandates out- of -state businesses to calculate their California income tax liability based on the percentage of their sales in California and the revenue derived from Prop. 39 is targeted to fund “green” energy projects.
After announcing on Jan. 11 that California is indeed in the black, Brown said that he would propose approximately $400 million in energy- efficient improvements to schools in public schools.
“My understanding was that was not a sure thing,” said Culver City Unified School District Board of Education President Katherine Paspalis of the governor’s proposal on assisting school districts financially with projects such as installing solar panels.
California spends approximately $700 million a year on energy for public schools, according to calculations from the California Energy Commission. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates the average school retrofit reduces energy costs by 30%.
Through the California Solar Incentives, a state program, school districts can obtain rebates that install solar panels.
The school board’s environmental sustainability committee believes those rebated can be reappropriated to the CCUSD general fund.
It is estimated that Culver City could save approximately $1.2 million through California Solar Incentives, according to the committee.
Stephen Murray, a Culver City energy consultant, thinks the school district should pursue grants that will be offered by the state for energy-saving projects.
“The district should really move quickly to secure them because there will be a lot of competition for them,” Murray predicted.
Paspalis said the current solar panel initiative, which will cover Farragut Elementary, Culver City Middle and Culver City High schools, is already moving ahead so state funding would not be necessary in order to offset those costs. But she does think it prudent to consider accessing the proposed revenue for future initiatives.
“If there is ‘free’ money that we can get, we should definitely be going after it,” the board president said.
The school district did not respond to email inquires regarding Brown’s proposal for funding energy upgrades.
Murray, who ran for city council last year, said CCUSD officials should do more to initiate green projects and the funding being sought by Brown can assist them in the regard.
“They should do an audit of all of their buildings, using infrared cameras and an electrical load analysis in order to determine how much energy they are using and then decide what they want to do,” he recommended.
During his council run, Murray suggested providing a free energy analysis for houses in Culver City to find out which homes are not conserving energy in an efficient manner and argued that the city should provide homeowners with incentives so that they can save money on their homes through green initiatives such as solar panels.
Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner (D-Berkley) has sponsored a bill, Assembly Bill 39, which would require the State Energy Resources Conservation and the Development Commission Energy Commission to administer the grants, no-interest loans or other financial assistance to eligible public schools for the purpose of projects that create jobs in California by reducing energy demand.
Paspalis said the solar panels projects is expected to be completed in the fall.
The distribution of the funds from Prop. 39 is expected to become an important topic of discussion as more schools apply for grants to initiate or complete green projects. The Legislature is slated to vote on how they will be distributed later this year.
