California’s SOMAH Program

Solar on Multi-Family Affordable Housing (SOMAH) program provides financial incentives to property owners for installing solar energy photovoltaic (PV) systems on qualified, multi-family, affordable housing. The California Public Utilities Commission will provide up to $100 million annually for 10 years under SOMAH to fund 300 megawatts of solar by 2030.

What Is SOMAH’s Goal? 

SOMAH aims to provide clean power and energy cost savings to California’s affordable housing residents by incentivizing solar installation on multi-family housing in low-income and disadvantaged communities. 

What Are The Benefits of SOMAH?

• For Property Owners:
  • Reduces and stabilizes the energy costs in common areas of multi-family buildings. 
  • Provides incentives to reduce the cost of PV installation substantially.  
  • Offers a range of no-cost technical assistance services to make going solar easier. 
  • Solar PV offers financial benefits to tenants via utility bill savings, making the property more attractive.
• For Tenants:
  • A direct financial benefit on energy bills 
  • Access to paid job training opportunities

SOMAH Incentives & PV Installation Costs

The price of a solar photovoltaic (PV) system is determined by several factors, including system components and configuration, difficulty of installation, and available incentives.

If a 100kw multi-family solar PV system costs $300,000, prior to tax credits and incentives, then estimated savings from SOMAH can be seen in the chart below:

To Be Eligible for the SOMAH Incentive, Properties Must: 

• Have at least five units.
• Be deed-restricted low-income residential housing.
• Satisfy one of the following:
  • 80% of the property residents have incomes at or below 60% of the area median income (AMI) OR
  • Property is in a defined disadvantaged community (DAC) that scores in the top 25% of census tracts statewide in the CalEnviroScreen, including property that is located on tribal land and is federally recognized.
• Be an existing building or retrofit (with a Certificate of Occupancy)
• Have separately metered units
• At least 51% of the system’s electric output must directly offset tenant load, allowing affordable housing residents to receive direct financial savings on their energy bills.
• Be a utility or community choice aggregator (CCA) customer (with VNEM) in the following utility territories:
  • Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E)
  • Southern California Edison (SCE)
  • San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E)
  • PacifiCorp
  • Liberty Utilities

TENCO SOLAR is a certified SOMAH Contractor, so contact us today at 888-507-6937 for help determining if your multi-family property is eligible for the SOMAH incentive. We can also assist you with the SOMAH application process!