California Climate Investments Roadmap
Step 2: Design or update the program consistent with the Funding Guidelines, including the overarching principles
Administering agencies work with CARB to incorporate Funding Guidelines requirements and recommendations into their program design.
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Purpose: CARB and agency staff will discuss the requirement in the Funding Guidelines to facilitate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reductions. This module introduces the guiding principle to provide an avenue for discussing quantification early in program development. CARB and administering agencies will work together in Module 11 to develop a quantification methodology (QM) and tool for estimating project GHG emissions reductions, either by using existing methods, or by developing new methods internally or through an external research contract.
Resources:
o California Climate Investments legislative guidance
o California Climate Investments Quantification Tools
Questions to Consider::
o What types of benefits are applicable to potential projects? Are these benefits quantifiable or semi-quantifiable?
o What types of projects are already quantified with existing tools and do the assumptions in the tool make sense for this program?
o What benefits will the program describe qualitatively?
o How will the agency collect the inputs to estimate GHG emissions reductions?
| Activities | Lead | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Review section II.C.1 (p. 14) and III.C (p. 36) of the Funding Guidelines. | All | |
| If the program will have quantifiable emissions reductions, develop a rough timeline for drafting, public review, and final posting of QM prior to first reporting round. | CARB | This timeline should be developed in coordination with the administering agency. |
| Review Step 4 to understand GHG emissions reductions reporting requirements and details on QM drafting process. Agencies should maintain a draft list of metrics that will need to be quantified using a new or existing CARB QM. | All |
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Purpose: California Climate Investments targets investments for priority populations and maximizes benefits and minimizes disbenefits to disadvantaged communities to the extent. To achieve this, administering agencies are encouraged to identify what percentage of funding can reasonably achieve direct, meaningful, and assured benefits to priority populations. CARB and administering agency staff will discuss how the program outreach and selection process will be designed to meet these objectives.
Resources:
o Priority Populations Resource Portal
Questions to Consider:
o Does the program have priority population targets identified in statute? How will the program’s investments reach priority populations and help reach targets?
o How is the program developed or designed to identify and address important community or household needs?
o Does the program track project benefits to other populations that do not match the disadvantaged and low-income community definitions per AB 1550?
o Do any of the existing benefit assessment tools provide a path for assuring benefits to priority populations, or will a tool need to be updated or a new tool be developed?
| Activity | Lead | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Read section I.C (p. 10), II.C.2 (p. 15), III.B.2 (p. 32), and section IV of the Funding Guidelines. | All | Section II.C.2 of the Funding Guidelines includes recommendations that may be useful for agencies during program development. |
| Discuss what percentage of investments can be made directed toward priority populations. | All | The priority populations resources page has several helpful tools. The priority populations definitions and mapping tool will be especially helpful for this conversation. |
| Discuss possible avenues for providing direct, meaningful, and assured benefits to priority populations. | All | To meet this requirement, projects must satisfy each of the three steps of a benefit assessment tool. |
| Finalize priority population targets and plan for reaching targets. | Administering Agency |
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Purpose: This module provides an opportunity to discuss this guiding principle and additional project benefits that agencies may report on. CARB and administering agencies will review CARB’s co-benefit assessment methodologies and the job reporting requirements outlined in the Funding Guidelines to determine if they will need to submit jobs data. This module acts as a preparation step for Module 13, where reporting requirements will be discussed in more detail.
Resources:
o California Climate Investments Co-benefit Assessment Methodologies
o California Climate Investments Tools
Questions to Consider:
o Are any of the CARB co-benefit assessment methodologies relevant for the project types?
o Are there other metrics, key variables, or co-benefits that should be estimated and reported beyond what is measured through CARB’s co-benefit assessment methodologies?
o Will projects meet the criteria for having to report jobs data?
| Activity | Lead | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Read sections II.C.3 (p. 16), III.C.4 (p. 16), VI.D.3 (p. 62), and VI.D.4 (p. 63). Revisit section III.C (p. 36) of the Funding Guidelines. | All | |
| Review Co-benefits Assessment Methodologies. | Administering Agency | Some co-benefit assessments outline the process for agencies to measure co-benefits; others outline CARB’s process for quantifying co-benefits based on agency data inputs. |
| Identify additional metrics or key variables that the program can report on and whether quantification is necessary. | All | Based on discussions in this module, agencies can maintain a draft list of metrics that they will report on annually. |
| Review jobs reporting requirements in the Funding Guidelines (Section VI.D.4) to determine if projects will be required to report jobs data. | All | |
| If projects are subject to jobs reporting requirements, review the jobs reporting tab in the reporting template and determine what mechanisms will be used to collect the required jobs metrics. | Administering Agency | Agencies are encouraged to review the “jobs-read me” tab of the jobs reporting template for more information about how to collect and report jobs. |
| Review Step 6 to understand reporting requirements in more detail. | Administering Agency |
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Purpose: Programs will review the job quality principles in the Funding Guidelines. CARB will support administering agency staff to determine the types of job that will be supported by GGRF dollars, what workforce concerns may exist for those jobs types, and policies that can be integrated during program design to help ensure GGRF dollars are supporting high-quality jobs.
Resources:
o California Climate Investments Workforce Development
Questions to Consider:
o What types of jobs does the program support? And in what industries?
o Are there opportunities to integrate any of the Job Quality Principles in the Funding Guidelines?
o Are there any known labor concerns for the industries supported by the program? How can the program work to counter these issues?
o Will the program rely on contractors to complete the project work?
| Activity | Lead | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Read section II.C.4 (p. 16) and V (p. 47) of the Funding Guidelines. | All | |
| Determine if the program has AB 680 compliance obligation (section V.B). | All | Only continuously appropriated programs have compliance obligations. If a new continuously appropriated program is created, then that program may have a compliance obligation as well. Projects may qualify for a project-level exemption. |
| Review discussion questions to determine what workforce policies are applicable given program structure. | All | Invite CARB workforce leads to meetings to support these discussions. |
| Determine plan for integrating applicable workforce policies. | All | Work with CARB workforce leads to create tools/resources to help agencies integrate workforce policies. |
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Purpose: CARB and the administering agency will discuss the process to identify potential burdens and design a plan to develop and implement strategies to avoid them in program design and project selection.
Resources:
o Coming Soon! Avoiding Burdens Supplemental Guidance
o Coming Soon! Avoiding Burdens —California Climate Investments
o Coming Soon! Burdens and Harms Assessment Tool (B-HAT)
o Coming Soon! Examples of Burdens and Corresponding Avoidance
Questions to Consider:
o What known burdens may result from/be exacerbated by the program/funded project types? What potential burdens can be identified through the program’s creation materials (comment letters, intended benefits, etc) or existing community or advocacy materials (reports, community analyses, etc)?
o What engagement can the program implement to further identify and understand potential substantial burdens to priority populations and historically underserved communities?
o What engagement can the program implement to identify/co-develop strategies to avoid creating or exacerbating burden to impacted communities?
o How can strategies to avoid potential burdens be integrated into program design or project selection?
o What challenges may impact the implementation of strategies to avoid burdens? What additional resources or support may be needed?
o How will burden avoidance strategies be assessed?
| Activity | Lead | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Read section II.C.5 (p. 17) and IV.B (p. 41) of the Funding Guidelines. | All | |
| Identify potential burdens that may result from your program/funded project types. | Administering Agency |
Review Avoiding Burdens Supplemental Guidance. Identify potential burdens through information gathering (see resource), or community engagement processes. Assess whether additional engagement is helpful/needed to further identify and understand potential burdens. Use the B-HAT (coming soon) for an interactive way to walk you through this process. |
| Identify strategies for avoiding burdens that may result from your program/funded project types. | Administering Agency |
Review Avoiding Burdens Supplemental Guidance. Identify burden-avoidance strategies through existing community engagement processes and assess whether additional engagement is helpful/needed. Use the “Examples of Burdens and Corresponding Avoidance Strategies” table (coming soon) and examples from other California Climate Investment Programs (see Avoiding Burdens webpage; coming soon) for additional strategies. Use the B-HAT (coming soon) for an interactive way to walk through this process. |
| Integrate identified burdens and avoidance strategies into program guidelines, project selection criteria, and the expenditure record. | Administering Agency | Review Avoiding Burdens Supplemental Guidance. |
| Complete the B-HAT, submit it to the program’s California Climate Investments contact person, and discuss the results. | Administering Agency |
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Purpose: This module provides a high-level overview of this guiding principle and introduces the mechanisms that programs will use to ensure program transparency and accountability. This module also walks agencies through the California Climate Investments Media and Communications Style Guide, agency website requirements, CARB website requirements, engagement channels, and ongoing coordination.
Resources:
o Media and Communications Style Guide & Logos
o California Climate Investments Newsletter
o Facebook
o X
o Coming Soon! Fillable Templates for California Climate Investment Program Pages
Questions to Consider:
o How will the program incorporate branding requirements?
o In addition to required program website information, are there other aspects of the program that the agency would like to post on their website?
o Are there other program transparency and accountability steps that require early action or planning?
| Activity | Lead | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Read sections II.C.6 (p. 18), III.A.2 (p. 26), and III.A.3 (p. 27) of the Funding Guidelines. | All | |
| Review the Media Guidelines and determine how the program will incorporate branding and messaging requirements. | All | |
| Complete Program Page template. | CARB | CARB and Agency work together to complete template. Once completed, CARB contact person can share with web lead. |
| Determine what information the agency needs to have posted on their own project website. | Administering Agency | |
| Determine if early action on other program accountability and transparency steps is needed. For example, although evaluations occur at the end of a project lifetime, agency staff should review this module early in program design to ensure adequate planning. | All | Review sections II.D. (expenditure records), III.A.4. (audits), III.B.7 (accountability tools), VI.F (information for oversight and audits), VI. (reporting), VI.E, and VI.E. (evaluations). Jump to later modules as needed to execute these steps in line with the program timeline. |
| Identify contacts at administering agency to attend the IMPACT meeting, outreach liaisons meeting, and to fill out the monthly program survey. Follow California Climate Investments social media channels and sign up for newsletters. | All | Agency staff can sign up to follow California Climate Investments social media channels and newsletters to receive regular updates. CARB staff will work with agency staff to help get the word out about relevant efforts or milestones for their programs. |
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Purpose: Administering agencies will review best available outreach and community engagement guidance and resources. Administering agencies will create a plan for a robust public participation process that fosters funding access for potential applicants, particularly for priority populations.
Resources:
o Technical Assistance and Capacity Building
o Funding Workbook for all California Tribes
o Coming soon! Preparing for Public Participation Resource: Information Gathering
Questions to Consider:
o What is the earliest point in the program development process that the administering agency can include engagement, particularly with priority populations most impacted by program activities?
o What level of engagement is appropriate for this program?
o Who might be left out of outreach and engagement efforts and what measures can the administering agency implement to foster their inclusion?
| Activity | Lead | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Read sections II.C.7 (p. 18) and III.A.5 (p. 29) of the Funding Guidelines. | All | |
| Discuss the program timeline and determine at what points to conduct outreach and engagement. | Administering Agency | Identify and consider key events for potential applicants (for example, busy harvesting seasons for farmers, key tribal events, EPA grant timelines, etc.). |
| Design a plan for outreach and engagement using the best available resources; determine existing outreach and engagement efforts that the program can align with. | Administering Agency | Participation in California Climate Investments interagency workgroups can help foster connections across the various administering agencies for potential alignment and collaboration. |
| Take advantage of California Climate Investments channels for sharing outreach opportunities. | All | California Climate Investments can advertise engagement opportunities through its newsletter, social media, and other upcoming events. |
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