SBX8 31: ARRA Funding for CCCs

No. of Jobs

N/A

Category

Expanding jobs in the new economy

Proposal

This bill will use $20 million in ARRA funds for campus building retrofits (to make them more energy efficient), green technology training for students and marketing of green energy best practices.

Summary

Providing the California Community College system with American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) dollars to fund an Energy Management System Targeted Retrofit Program.

Background

In December 2009, the Bureau of State Audits found that the California Energy Resources Development and Conservation Commission was unprepared to award hundreds of millions of dollars in federal ARRA funds received by the state for the State Energy Program.

To date, the CEC has spent $72 million of the $112 million in available federal funds for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. The Community Colleges are uniquely positioned to effectively use the money for both facility development and job training. It is estimated that jobs in the field of renewable energy are among the most rapidly growing sectors. And as recently as the State of the Union address, the President has indicated federal support for green job training. This proposal will enable our students to train for jobs in the rapidly expanding renewable energy job market, while helping college campuses reduce energy costs.

Read the Bill