The City of Carlsbad's Environmental Guiding Principles call for the city to support efforts to reduce energy and greenhouse gas emissions and find new and more energy efficient methods for delivering services. The guiding principles also call for enabling the community to design energy saving features such as solar energy systems into public and private projects.

Energy Efficiency

Energy Upgrade California

Energy Upgrade California is a program of the California Public Utilities Commission, in collaboration with the California Energy Commission, California counties, cities, nonprofit organizations, and the state’s investor-owned utilities, that provides incentives for home improvement projects that lower your energy use, conserve water and natural resources, and make your home healthier and more comfortable.

Home Energy Score Assessment Program

The city's Home Energy Score Assessment Program offers residents a free, customized assessment to measure their home’s energy use and identify ways to conserve energy and save money. Learn more and sign up here.

Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE)

Property owners within Carlsbad are eligible to participate in Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) programs. PACE programs allow the financing of renewable energy, energy efficiency or water conservation projects through a voluntary assessment on their tax bill. The California FIRST and Figtree PACE programs are available for commercial/industrial property owners, and the California HERO and Ygrene Works programs are available for both residential and commercial/industrial property owners.

Renewable energy

All properties

The California Solar Initiative is a solar rebate program that can help lower energy costs and create a sustainable energy future through the use of solar technology. The program has two components: photovoltaic solar panels and thermal solar water heating.

Commercial and industrial properties

The Self-Generation Incentive Program provides financial incentives to commercial and industrial property owners for the installation of distributed generation technologies installed on the customer's side of the utility meter.All commercial and industrial property owners within Carlsbad are eligible to participate Property Assessed Clean Energy or "PACE" programs, which allow the financing of renewable energy, energy efficiency or water conservation projects through a voluntary assessment on their tax bill. The programs available in Carlsbad are Renew Financial and Figtree PACE.

Electric vehicles

Clean Vehicle Rebate Project

The Clean Vehicle Rebate Project provides rebates of up to $2,500 for the purchase or lease of a zero-emission vehicle (ZEV), including electric, plug-in hybrid electric, and fuel cell vehicles. The program is available to individuals, non-profit organizations, government entities and business owners.

Electric vehicle charging locations

A map of publicly-available electric vehicle charging locations in San Diego County.