Thanks to $440,000 from California Climate Investments through Access Clean California, Latino and Latina Roundtable is connecting residents of environmentally and economically disadvantaged communities with benefits like electric vehicle incentives and solar power.
The California Air Resources Board’s Access Clean California is designed to partner with community-based organizations to raise awareness of the incentives available and help California's most impacted communities better access the clean transportation and mobility funding. Access Clean California also works to help build the capacity of community organizations to conduct clean mobility outreach.
Latino and Latina Roundtable, one of six recipient community-based organizations, was funded to hire two local fellows to work with organization staff full time and conduct culturally relevant outreach on clean transportation programs. Latino and Latina Roundtable also attended capacity-building workshops to position the organization for future growth and deeper involvement with State agency programs while educating community members in Pomona and San Gabriel Valley about the California Air Resources Board's clean mobility ownership incentives. With the Latino and Latina Roundtable’s efforts, community members now know that there are electric vehicle incentives available to help them get out of their polluting car and into a zero-emission electric vehicle.
Erica Williams, a City of Pomona resident learned about all the incentives available to help get her get into a zero-emission electric vehicle. “I have not spent any money on gas since I bought my electric car a year ago,” says Erica. “I cannot tell you how freeing that is. I commute to LA every day and previously spent $250 to $300 a month on gas and that is no longer an expense I have. I pull into my driveway and plug my car in. How easy is that? Originally, I wasn’t going to look at them [zero-emission vehicles] because they were not affordable. Then I found out about all the incentives that are out there.”
In addition, Erica was able to get solar panels and a vehicle charger at no cost through the California Public Utilities Commission’s Energy for All Program and a $3,500 rebate through the California Air Resources Board’s Clean Vehicle Rebate Program and Southern California Edison’s rebate program. “I bought my car in September of last year and by December I had solar panels,” says Erica. By partnering with a trusted local community organization, Access Clean California helped Erica identify the incentive programs that met her needs and provided the tools and support to streamline her application to each program.
Not only is this project helping to connect income-qualified California residents with clean energy and transportation benefits, but this provides fellows with valuable experience working with community members on clean transportation programs. Liberated Soon works full time as a fellow at the Latino and Latina Roundtable.“ It makes me happy to be able to help people switch to an electric vehicle, especially when they don’t think they can even afford one,” says Liberated.