C-PACE: Utah's Best Kept Secret to Accelerate its Decarbonization Goals

Intermountain Sustainability Summit
March 17, 2022
On-Demand Session

C-PACE: Utah's Best Kept Secret to Accelerate its Decarbonization Goals
Presented by: Theddi Chappell, Sustainable Values, Inc. and Utah C-PACE 

C-PACE (Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy financing) was originally enabled in Utah statute in 2015, and then updated to incorporate more market-based policies in 2017. Subsequent to the legislative changes in 2017, the C-PACE program has facilitated more than $90M in transactions on new and existing buildings – all with a focus on improving energy efficiency and water conservation, and lowering emissions. As such, C-PACE is poised to lead the market in financing building upgrades that will facilitate our electrification and decarbonization goals. However, compared to programs in other states, Utah C-PACE remains a relatively under-utilized resource. Despite its potential as a persuasive economic development and sustainability resource, few municipalities and counties have a good understanding of the opportunities the program offers their constituents. This session will provide a concise overview of Utah’s C-PACE program and delve in depth into the numerous benefits to various stakeholders adopting and utilizing this innovative form of financing. Discussions will relate not only to the environmental and health benefits of a more sustainable built environment, but also to the longer-term asset value implications of electrification and enhanced energy efficiency.