New ILSFA solar projects and tools for prospective participants

Learn About an ILSFA Participant’s Experience

Over the summer, the Dubois family became one of the first households to go solar through Illinois Solar For All’s (ILSFA) distributed generation sub-program, which serves income-eligible residential customers. The family had solar panels installed on the roof of their bungalow on Chicago’s South Side (pictured above) and will start seeing significant savings on their energy bills.

“It was like we were in Hollywood because the neighbors were interested, and they pulled over to see what was going on,” Lytese Dubois said of the installation. Learn more about the benefits and savings the Dubois family will receive from their ILSFA project by reading our case study.

ILSFA’s Low-Income Distributed Generation (LIDG) sub-program is currently accepting project applications for residential projects. Contact an Approved Vendor if you are interested in installing solar panels on your roof or in your yard.

New ILSFA Projects Approved

We’re excited to announce that more solar projects serving non-profits and public facilities were selected as part of ILSFA’s third program year. The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) approved 17 projects to receive ILSFA incentives on October 9, 2020, following the project selection we held in early September. One additional project is expected to be submitted for ICC approval in the coming weeks. View the full list of approved, pending, and waitlisted projects.

These projects will be installed across the state, from Effingham to Normal to Chicago. The projects approved to date will create a total capacity of 2,375 kW of solar energy. ILSFA incentives allow Approved Vendors to pass along measurable savings from the solar energy produced to the participating organizations, helping them serve the disadvantaged communities where they provide critical services.

Compare Residential Solar Offers

We are excited to share a new resource that details four solar offers from Approved Vendors in the LIDG sub-program. This resource allows customers to compare rates, contract lengths, payment types, and more, making it easier for potential participants to evaluate their residential solar options. Offers are available throughout most of the state, and we’re working with Approved Vendors to fill gaps in coverage.

All Approved Vendors indicating interest in developing 1-4 unit projects in the LIDG program were invited to submit standardized offers. Interested Approved Vendors that have not yet submitted an offer can reach out to info@IllinoisSFA.com for a fillable template.

This listing will be available on the ILSFA website and will be updated as offers are added or expire.

Find Solar Projects Seeking Subscribers

Income-eligible Illinois residents interested in subscribing to a community solar project can now consult the ILSFA Low-Income Community Solar (LICS) Subscriber Directory. The directory lists community solar projects in both utility territories that are either currently accepting subscribers or will begin accepting subscribers soon. Customers interested in a project should look to the details on the targeted and eligible subscriber base to help determine if the project is right for them.

The information in this directory will be updated as current projects stop accepting subscribers and new projects are added.

More Program Updates

Community Solar Project Selection Coming Soon
Our team is completing the review of project applications submitted for the LICS sub-program’s third program year. In the coming weeks we’ll be announcing updates, including project scoring rubrics and rank scores, with project selection scheduled for October 27, 2020. View the program calendar and the updated project dashboard.

Updated COVID-19-Related Marketing Guidelines
The Illinois Power Agency (IPA) issued an update to confirm its prohibition of door-to-door sales and solicitation, initially adopted in March 2020, remains in place. The IPA’s full announcement offers additional clarifications regarding the scope of the prohibition.

Other Qualifying Programs for Job Training
Approved Vendors who cannot find graduates of FEJA Workforce Development Programs to work on their ILSFA projects can take advantage of Other Qualifying Programs. We recently published a list of approved Other Qualifying Programs, as well as potential Other Qualifying programs that are eligible to apply, on our job training webpage.

Featured photo courtesy of Certasun LLC