Join the Missouri Clean Energy District

An economic development tool offering unlimited funding for energy improvement

Property Assessed Clean Energy

PACE is an economic development engine that’s energized local economies across the country in thousands of cities and towns. PACE makes it possible for owners of residential, commercial, industrial, multifamily, and nonprofit properties to obtain low-cost, long-term financing for energy efficiency, water conservation, renewable energy projects, and more. In Missouri, member communities represent over half of the population of the state.  Review our listing of current members. Also, look over our Membership Map

PACE has already financed billions of dollars of clean energy improvements for homeowners and approximately $500 million for over 1000 commercial building owners.  This capital investment has had profound impacts on local economies — it’s increased jobs for local, family-owned contractors and solar installers; reduced energy bills for thousands of homeowners, which puts more money in their pockets each month; and brought up property values in central business districts through efficient redevelopment projects.

PACE also helps municipalities meet their climate goals. Many municipalities have used PACE as a tool to tackle their greenhouse gas and energy reduction targets. According to the HERO program — which has completed over $1.4 billion residential PACE financings — every $100,000 invested leads to 182 tons of CO2 emissions abated and over 200,000 gallons of water saved. PACE programs only allow the use of certified efficient products to ensure that customers will save energy.

Economic Stimulus
  • PACE makes investments in energy efficiency and renewable energy more feasible for a wider group of homeowners and business owners. PACE doesn’t rely on personal credit (which can be a barrier to obtaining financing for many low-income homeowners and small businesses) but rather depends on equity in the property. PACE also allows for longer payback terms than most other forms of financing — up to 25 years. As a result, PACE brings in more investment dollars for projects that otherwise may have been left stranded.
  • These investments directly create jobs for HVAC contractors, energy services companies, and solar installers, which are often small local businesses.
  • Commercial PACE financing can be used to reinvigorate business districts through redevelopment projects, such as Milwaukee’s Mackie Building restoration, which used $1.7 million PACE financing for efficiency improvements to prepare the building for the addition of 25 apartments and new office space. These changes will bring new business to a historical area of downtown Milwaukee. See this case study.
  • PACE puts money back in consumers’ pockets in the form of utility bill savings, tax deductibility of the assessments (in some cases), and lower insurance premiums in areas where resilience, such as hurricane hardening or seismic retrofits, is an important factor. People will recirculate these saved dollars into the local economy, creating an economic multiplier effect that further creates local jobs.
  • PACE improvements (being permanent, income- or savings-generating fixtures to properties) increase property values, which, in the long-run, leads to greater tax revenues for municipalities that can be used for public programs that further benefit the local community.

To learn more, read a study of the Economic Impact of Residential PACE Programs by EcoNorthwest.

Environmental Benefits
  • PACE helps communities achieve important energy and water conservation goals. Efficiency projects upgrade old equipment which reduces energy use, while renewables replace fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
  • PACE allows for projects with paybacks of 20 years, rather than only low-hanging fruit with quick paybacks. This makes possible comprehensive projects with a deeper impact on energy usage.
  • PACE has been used to finance an estimated $88 million for water conservation in drought-stricken areas of California, saving multiple billions of gallons of water.
  • PACE solves problems inherent in other efficiency financing options. With PACE, building tenants can see both the costs and benefits of efficiency improvements, which solves the “split incentives problem” that typically exists between tenants and landlords. PACE also makes it possible to securitize efficiency projects of different types, as multiple PACE providers have achieved with over $1.5 billion already securitized. This bundling of diverse efficiency projects into a single securitization is possible because of the added security PACE provides and the strict standards for qualifying projects set by the PACE program. As such, PACE has the unique potential to drive trillions of investment dollars from major lending institutions into energy efficiency and renewable energy.

Contact us for next steps

Just as we have for numerous of our members, we are happy to help with the membership process. We provide all the information needed to assist the governing body in understanding the steps which are taken to join with the district. Providing all legal documents relating to the district’s organization as well as specimen ordinances and resolutions for the authorization of local membership. We follow the prospective member’s lead as to their process but otherwise the process is straightforward.

No Cost to Municipality
    • PACE programs make use of private funding, not public dollars.
    • It is possible to set up a PACE program without any cost, liability or administrative burden to the participating municipality. In the case of MCED, these programs set up the necessary administration framework and allow municipalities sign onto the program at no cost. Funding is then secured from private institutions to complete energy improvement projects.

     

Consumer Protections
    • PACE offers additional consumer protections over and above other types of financing.
    • PACENation has released consumer protection standards, which provide the strongest protections for homeowners using PACE or any other type of financing who want to invest in clean energy and water efficiency upgrades to their properties. They address:
      • A homeowner’s eligibility for financing and ability to repay
      • Comprehensive financial disclosures
      • Appropriate contractor conduct
      • Acceptable products and projects (with pricing guidelines)
      • Post-funding support
      • Treatment of protected classes
      • Grievance procedures
      • Data security and privacy matters

MCED Consumer Protections

MCED has implemented its’ policies to provide stronger protections for homeowners than any other type of clean energy financing. They address a homeowner’s eligibility for financing and ability to repay, comprehensive financial disclosures, appropriate contractor conduct, acceptable products and projects (with pricing guidelines), post-funding support, treatment of protected classes, grievance procedures, data security and privacy matters.

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