California tribes can apply for a share of $30 million for residential energy upgrades through a state program offering eligible tribes a guaranteed $75,000 base allocation and additional funding based on housing stock.
The California Energy Commission’s Tribal Direct Install Program — part of the state’s Equitable Building Decarbonization (EBD) Program — is open to federally recognized and nonrecognized tribes on the Native American Heritage Commission’s contact list. Applications are due Feb. 19, 2027.
The program funds energy-efficient electric appliances, insulation and related improvements at no cost to participating households. Every retrofit must include a heat pump, heat pump water heater or both, according to the commission’s application workshop materials.
Eligible residential buildings must be in California, have been built before Jan. 1, 2020, and be owned or managed by tribes or tribal organizations, or owned by enrolled tribal members. Buildings do not have to be on tribal land.
Tribes can request up to $500,000 beyond the base allocation, for a potential total of $575,000. The maximum additional request applies to tribes with at least 650 homes. Additional allocations depend on available funding.
Tribes may administer the direct grants themselves or receive services through a state-selected contractor. Tribes receiving direct grants will not be required to provide a limited waiver of sovereign immunity covering the grant agreement, according to the commission’s solicitation manual.
The commission estimates that the $75,000 base allocation would retrofit two to four homes.
“The EBD Program helps ensure that families who don’t have the resources to invest in clean technologies are still able to benefit from California’s clean energy transition, and aren’t left behind as California transitions away from fossil fuels,” a CEC staff member who asked not to be named told Tribal Business News.
