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County Legislator Mike Sigler told the Lansing Town Board Wednesday that a new program will provide funding for businesses in Tompkins County purchase renewable energy equipment to reduce their operating costs, as well as greenhouse gas emissions.  Businesses will obtain loans through the Energize New York program, then repay them through the County.

"Say I own a business and I want to put solar panels on my roof," Sigler explained.  "But I don't have the money to front that.  Through this program you can get the money that you need, and then you pay it back through your property tax.  That, then, is attached to your property, so even if you sell your property the new owner pays it through the property tax.  You would have to disclose that, obviously, to a new buyer.  It's just a way to get these things going, and it has to be a commercial property."

The new program was announced two weeks ago in Ithaca by Tompkins County Legislature Chair Michael Lane and City of Ithaca Mayor Svante Myrick, along with local business leaders and other government officials.

The program can be used to fund lighting, insulation, air sealing, heating and cooling systems, smart controls, energy storage and combined heat and power, solar PV, wind, biomass and geothermal equipment for qualifying businesses and not-for-profits.

Councilman Robert Cree asked who administers the program and where the money comes from.  He expressed concern that the funds would be fronted by County taxpayer money.  Sigler promised to get answers, and the next day he told board members he had contacted Tompkins County Administrator Joe Mareane, who said there should be no costs to Tompkins County.

"That's the beauty of it, and what makes it so much better than what we'd considered doing a few years ago, which was to take on everything--including bonding for the money to finance the improvements.," Mareane explained."The only potential cost to the County occurs if an owner defaults on property taxes (which include the repayment of Energize loans)," Mareane added. "In that case, the County would cover the missed loan payments, but be able to recover them when the property is auctioned. Therefore, our financial exposure is very limited and short term.   The worst case would be if an owner defaults, auction price is less than the amount owed, and County has to reach into its pocket to cover a few years worth of loan payment installments until the new owner takes over the property and the loan.  Since our property tax repayment history is almost 100%, our risks are very low."

The Tompkins County Legislature and the City of Ithaca passed local laws in the spring of 2015, entering into agreements with Energize NY to participate in the finance program.   Tompkins County and the City of Ithaca join 22 other municipalities in New York State that have signed on with Energize NY as a means to support their economic development and environmental goals.

Energize NY is funded in part through the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), and aligns with Governor Cuomo's Reforming the Energy Vision (REV) strategy to build a clean, resilient and affordable energy system for all New Yorkers.

"Our goal is to make energy savings simple and affordable for commercial building owners throughout New York State," said Executive Director of Energize NY Mark Thielking. "We work on behalf of our member communities, like Tompkins County and the City of Ithaca, to realize the many economic, local development, environmental and public health benefits of reducing energy waste in local buildings and delivering the energy savings to their residents."

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