Making Solar Power Accessible to Multifamily Affordable Housing
California’s Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH) Program is designed to assure equal access to clean energy and help reduce the burden of energy costs for low-income tenants by providing financial incentives for installing solar energy systems. A 10-year, billion-dollar community-based program, SOMAH is managed by the California Public Utilities Commission and administered by a team of nonprofit organizations.
Across the state, more than 3,500 properties encompassing nearly 255,000 individual households qualify for incentives under the program.
How can SOMAH benefit your community?
SOMAH incentives significantly reduce solar installation costs, offering property owners long-term savings on electricity costs for common areas, a hedge against utility rate hikes, and reduced carbon emissions. Want to know if your property is eligible? Click here to learn more.
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.
SOMAH promotes workforce development through local paid job training opportunities. These opportunities stimulate job growth and economic development in California communities and are intended to increase access to the solar industry.
Participating contractors can bring customers into the program and grow their customer base.
Partner with SOMAH to promote solar to multifamily affordable housing property owners and tenants among your constituents.
As partners with the SOMAH Program, we can help you learn more about how it works and the benefits it can bring to your community.
Testimonials
“My residents will be able to stress less. A lot of them are low-income and a lot of them live paycheck to paycheck, and sometimes that means wondering which bill they are going to pay. Being able to have the benefit of the solar and dropping their [energy] bills is going to give them that little bit of extra cushion where they can do things with a little bit less stress.”
- Durelle Kurlinski, On-site Property Manager
“I’m excited about [solar] because of the money on energy that we will be saving. We feel like we can actually save for our future. A lot of residents I’m sure will benefit from that.”
- Faliz Nonan, resident of a completed SOMAH project
“The SOMAH Program has been great to work with. I highly recommend it. I love that it’s a requirement to offset tenant load as well. It’s not just benefiting the common areas or the overall property expenses, but it’s a direct benefit to our low-and-moderate income residents.”
- Katherine Fleming, BRIDGE’s Senior Vice President of Portfolio
“Installing solar energy systems on multifamily affordable housing is a critical tool for helping Irvine achieve its carbon neutrality goal by 2032. The SOMAH Program plays a vital role in this effort by facilitating equitable access to the cost-saving benefits of solar for both property owners and residents.”
- Farrah Khan, Mayor of Irvine
More About SOMAH
Delivering clean energy and credits on energy bills to hundreds of thousands of California’s affordable housing and environmental justice communities.
Funded by greenhouse gas auction proceeds to benefit some of the state’s most climate-impacted residents.
Additional Resources
Subscribe to the bi-annual SOMAH newsletter for program-wide information
Job seekers, job training organizations, and contractors subscribe to the quarterly workforce development newsletter
Interested in participating in SOMAH? Stay informed about SOMAH webinars & training by visiting the Events page.
OC Goes Solar is proud to partner with the SOMAH Program Administrator.