Low-income residents of Erie County save 10% through community solar program

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The Erie County Low Income Program for Sustainable Energy (ECLIPSE), a new program that provides electricity savings to Erie County residents in need, chose Ampion Renewable Energy as the community solar administrator. Through this community solar program, Ampion will provide qualifying residents with electricity savings of up to 10%.

Ampion provides subscription services for community solar plants, signing people up for  clean energy as well as providing customer service. Ampion will qualify the ratepayers for the ECLIPSE program, and those who are eligible will receive discounted solar credits on their electric bill.

“Currently there are over 80,000 low-to-moderate income households in Erie County who can benefit from this program,” said Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz. “We encourage residents to take advantage of this opportunity.”

Community solar is way for ratepayers to subscribe to a portion of a solar plant and receive credit on their electric bill. This program is available to all Erie County homeowners and renters who are benefiting from federal or state aid programs, including the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP), Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), Medicaid, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).

“Community solar makes renewable energy and savings available to electric utility customers without installations or upfront costs,” said Brian Buzby, community partnerships executive at Ampion. “Through ECLIPSE, Erie County and Ampion are making it easier for low-income residents to support solar energy while saving money. Our goal is to make the enrollment process as simple as possible. All you need is a copy of your current electric bill and proof that you’re benefitting from a government assistance program.”

Erie County will host in-person events and notify residents about ECLIPSE to help households enroll in the cost-saving program. Residents can sign up for the program here.

Ampion reports that it manages subscriptions for a portfolio of over 1.5 GW and that it has saved subscribers over $42 million in electricity costs through community solar.

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