Save on Your Monthly Bill with Solar

SCE customers who live in qualifying Disadvantaged Communities (DAC) can apply to enroll in the Green Saver and Local Green Saver programs. To qualify for the Green Saver program, the customer must also be eligible for CARE or FERA programs. You can find more information about the eligibility criteria for each program on the CPUC website under the acronyms DAC-GT (Green Saver) and CSGT (Local Green Saver).

There is a Local Green Saver project in Visalia that is estimated to go live in fourth quarter 2023. To find out more, click here.

• The California Public Utilities Commission designed these programs to support Disadvantaged Communities (DACs), which are defined by the California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal EPA) as Census tracts receiving the highest 25 percent of overall scores in CalEnviroScreen (CES) 4.0.
• Census tracts lacking overall scores in CalEnviroScreen 4.0 due to data gaps but receiving the highest 5 percent of CalEnviroScreen 4.0 cumulative pollution burden scores.
• Census tracts identified in the 2017 DAC designation (CES 3.0) as disadvantaged, regardless of their scores in CalEnviroScreen 4.0.
• Lands under the control of federally recognized tribes.

Additionally, there are two interim modifications to the definition of DACs with respect to the program eligibility for the Green Saver and Local Green Saver programs:

1. 305 census tracts that were in the highest scoring 25 percent in CES 3.0 but are not in the top 25 percent in CES 4.0 continue to be considered disadvantaged and thus eligible for funding under these programs.
2. Certain tribal communities. Specifically, all California Indian Country as defined in 18 United States Code Section 1151, with the exception of privately held in-holdings, which are defined as non-Indian owned fee land located within the exterior boundaries of California Indian Country; in the event of multiple owners, such land shall be considered Indian owned if at least one owner is a tribe or tribal member, regardless of the use of the land.

These two interim modification to the DAC-GT and CSGT programs eligibility rules are intended to be “additive”, starting from the time at which a Program Administrator’s DAC-GT and CSGT implementation advice letter is approved, until the CPUC makes a determination on whether and how to modify DAC-GT and CSGT eligibility criteria in the IOUs’ Applications for Review.

Explore the map of the DACs eligible for these solar programs.

To apply, you will need your SCE service account number, as well as your service address and other contact information.

The Green Saver program also requires applicants to be eligible for CARE/FERA. If you are not currently enrolled in the CARE or FERA program, you may need to calculate your total combined gross annual household income and provide some information to determine if you may be eligible for the program.

Yes, you may be eligible for both the Green Saver and Local Green Saver programs, but you cannot enroll in both programs. If you are eligible for both, you will be enrolled in the Local Green Saver program in your community, unless the eligible solar projects in your area are already fully subscribed. If that is the case, you will be enrolled in the Green Saver program until there is an available Local Green Saver project in your area.

Once your request to enroll has been confirmed and you have been accepted into the program, you will be placed on the rate within 1-2 billing cycles. If the program is fully subscribed or if a project in your area is unavailable, then you may be placed on a waitlist until the rate is available and the corresponding project is completed. At that time, you will automatically be placed on the rate on your next billing cycle.

You will be placed on the waitlist if you qualify for a program but it is full or not yet available. If the program opens or reopens and you are still eligible, then you will be moved off the waitlist and we will send you an email letting you know that you have been enrolled in the program.

You can learn more about CARE and FERA on our CARE/FERA Discounted Rates page.

Yes, our other renewable energy programs include, but are not limited to, the Green Rate and Enhanced Community Renewables programs.

A local non-profit community-based organization, local government, or school can sponsor the development of a Local Green Saver Program in your local area. The sponsor’s role is to partner with a solar project developer, be a catalyst for the community and the project, and help provide local economic benefits, including job training and workforce development.

To formalize the sponsorship between the community and project developers, the developer must give SCE a Letter of Commitment executed by the Community Sponsor entity with authority, such as the city council. This letter should (1) demonstrate substantial community member interest in subscribing to the project, (2) estimate the number of subscribers and load so that the project is sized to forecasted demand, (3) provide a preliminary outreach plan for recruiting subscribers (which may be conducted in conjunction with the developer and/or the utility), (4) indicate siting preferences, including community-suggested host sites, and (5) verify that the site chosen for the bid is consistent with the community preference.

To get connected with a developer, email DACPrograms@sce.com.

No, you cannot qualify for one of these programs if you have solar at home. If you are interested in installing solar at your home, visit our Solar Power page to learn about the installation process and how you can receive credits on your bill through our Net Energy Metering program.