By Joan Hartmann, 3rd District Santa Barbara County Supervisor & Das Williams, Senior Advisor of Policy and Legislative Affairs at Central Coast Community Energy, 3CE
California has long been a leader in clean energy. From the early days of rooftop solar to becoming the fourth-largest economy in the world with climate action as a cornerstone, we have shown what’s possible. But right now, we face a pivotal moment — and a fleeting opportunity.
If you’ve ever considered installing solar panels with battery storage or buying an electric vehicle, now is the time. Thanks to federal tax incentives from the Inflation Reduction Act, households and businesses can save thousands—but those incentives are expiring after 2025. To qualify, battery systems must be installed and fully operational by the end of this year. To get the $7500 for a new or $4000 for a used car, it needs to be purchased and delivered by Sept 30th. That’s not a lot of time and you need to start right away to make the cutoff.
Here in Santa Barbara County, we’re blessed with abundant sun and the public will to act. Our region has been a pioneer in environmental leadership since the 1969 Oil Spill. Today we continue that legacy as proud members of 3CE, Central Coast Community Energy, a public agency formed to accelerate our transition away from fossil fuels. Through 3CE, we already have contracts in place to power our homes and businesses with more than 60% clean energy—and expect to be 100% renewable by more than a decade ahead of the state goal. 3CE also reinvests in our communities through rebates for electrification, storage and resilience. Its incentives for battery storage can be stacked on top of the federal subsidy. 3CE has invested millions in Santa Barbara County to help residents and businesses make the switch. These are local dollars, staying in our community, building our clean energy future from the ground up.
Solar panels aren’t enough anymore. In fact, they can unintentionally add to California’s energy headaches. On sunny days, we produce more solar power than we can use and must sometimes pay other states to take the surplus. When the sun sets, demand spikes and gas-fired power plants roar to life.
Battery storage is the key to solving this imbalance. Batteries capture that excess clean energy during the day and use it when it matters most, in the evening during peak demand. And with the predicted increase in Public Safety Power Shutoffs (PSPS) to reduce fire risk from power lines in high winds, batteries keep the power on. Today’s batteries are safer and more reliable than ever. Systems have built-in fire prevention, automatic shutoffs, and can be monitored via smartphone. In the event of a blackout, they can keep your fridge, medical devices, and internet running — turning your home into a personal resilience hub. It’s savings, resilience, and a tremendous sense of independence—a win for our climate goals.
The urgency to make the transition couldn’t be greater because the federal government has voted to eliminate the tax incentives they provide to individuals to electrify their homes and cars. At the same time it has reduced funding for renewable energy research and development, revoked California’s long-standing authority to set stronger vehicle emissions standards, rolled back rules requiring electric vehicle adoption in federal fleets, removed climate resilience programs from federal infrastructure priorities, and directed support back towards fossil fuels, including coal. While climate disasters multiply, the very tools we need to understand and respond have been reduced.
But the planet doesn’t wait, and neither can we. California — and especially Central Coast residents — have a chance to lead. By installing rooftop solar and battery storage, upgrading to electric vehicles, and cutting fossil fuel use at home and in our communities, we reduce emissions and build resilience — right now.
The responsibility to act falls to all of us. And in that, there is power. We can’t afford to wait to do what the moment demands. We need to act, we need to lead by example, we need to establish the model that others can follow.
Op-Ed’s are written by community members, not representatives of edhat. The views and opinions expressed in Op-Ed articles are those of the author’s.
[Do you have an opinion on something local? Share it with us at info@edhat.com.]
Also Read
- Santa Barbara Considers Crackdown on Single-Use Plastics
- Carpinteria Beach Area Temporarily Closed to Protect Harbor Seals
- New Family-Owned Café Opens in Downtown Santa Barbara
- Santa Barbara County Leads California With the Sharpest Home Price Gains
- Trump Administration Threatens to Withhold SNAP Funding From Several States, Including California
The problem with “solar farms” and such is that they are put in places with environmental value, will permanently despoil that site (deserts especially) so when removed leave a permanent scar, are forced to transmit power by cable with is also aesthetically problematic and can cause fires and other problems over time and when over used and these sites are almost always part of some investment scheme using tax and rate payer money to give hedge funds big returns. A better system would be a compromise whereby such “farms” are sited atop existing right of way. The most creative idea is to put them atop the aqueducts but they can be along freeway and interstate highways and transmission line right of ways and there seems plenty of room there for battery storage. The only apparent resistance to this is from the public utilities which want to build infra structure since they get a guaranteed return on that money, build more and spend more is their preference.
And roof top solar on a SFR is not using environmental value? We all should live in skyscrapers with tiny foot prints.
As usual for rube, that made no sense. Rooftops are wasted space currently.
RHS -lining the interstates with solar panels would be a great solution. Unfortunately, those who run this country have a way of ignoring simple and effective solutions, especially when it comes to cleaning up our planet.
Yep–the aqueduct concept looks really good IMO.
Solar farms are much more efficient than roof top. Not sure why I should pay for my neighbors to get free power.
RUBES – you’re not really though. Funny how some will complain about a few tax dollars being spent on cleaning up our planet and the air we and our children breathe, but are totally silent or even vocally supportive of their tax dollars paying for a new Trump golf course in Scotland over the weekend, paying to assist in the cruelty, starvation and death in Gaza, and even to directly pay for the defense of a sexual predator that somehow was chosen to be president.
Priorities for some are just weird I guess?
Solar farms are much more efficient
and benefit all – why not throw tax money there?
Solar farms are not ultimately more resilient, as they rely on transmission lines that are subject to interruptions and overloads.
Much better and cheaper in the long run, and more robust, is rooftop solar and local microgrids.
But, as with the weather, the rube has no clue.
So you’re opposed to grid dependent solar farms and windmills?
No. They are just not as good as local microgrids, and do more ecological damage.
I agree that we should! Sadly, the sexual predator you helped elect to be the president of our once great nation passed a bill that takes money AWAY from solar farms and wind farms and anything else deemed to be good for our environment.
Stop voting for terrible people and life will be much better for us all.
Solar farms are more efficient, yes – but it’s not either/or. We can do both!
Who is getting free power? Even with a rebate, it’s nowhere close to free. (Payback time, maybe 12 years.) An advantage to roof top solar is not losing power when the ENTIRE west side goes down for hours. Multiple times in the last couple of years.
If grid down concerns you get battery and/or generator back up. You don’t need private solar panels imported from China.
If you want any solar panels, even in your “farms”, they have to come from China now because of our great orange leader’s policies.
Would be nice if this included a link to info about how to get affordable solar panels, rebates, etc. It’s been largely unaffordable for many – if not most- of us.