Solar discount programs in California: 20% off the bill with no panels

How the solar discount works

The discount comes from two CPUC programs. The DAC Green Tariff lets income-qualified residential customers in disadvantaged communities “who may be unable to install solar on their roof” benefit from utility-scale clean energy and “receive a 20% bill discount.” The Community Solar Green Tariff does the same with a local solar project (CPUC). The CPUC ties eligibility to CARE and FERA, and it defines a disadvantaged community as a census tract in the top 25 percent statewide on CalEnviroScreen (CPUC).

You are not buying solar power in the way a rooftop owner does. You keep paying your normal bill, and the program takes 20% off it. The solar that backs the discount is somewhere else: Ava Community Energy, for example, says it has contracted five solar projects totaling 7.28 megawatts for its program, with the first operating in 2026 (Ava).

Who runs the discount for your address

This is where most people get stuck. If a community choice aggregator (CCA) buys your electricity, PG&E’s and SCE’s programs will not take you: both exclude CCA and Direct Access customers (PG&E, SCE). Your CCA may run its own version instead. Check the name on the generation section of your bill, then find it below. All terms were checked on each administrator’s page on September 23, 2026.

• PG&E Green Saver. For PG&E electricity customers who live in a disadvantaged community or tribal community and are eligible for or enrolled in CARE or FERA. PG&E says the discount comes “on top of any applicable CARE or FERA discounts,” that the program is open to renters, and that you can stay up to 20 years while you remain eligible. It also says the program “is currently at capacity” and that, as the CPUC directed, it auto-enrolls eligible customers. Customers on net energy metering do not qualify (PG&E).
• SCE Green Saver. For SCE customers in a qualified disadvantaged community who are eligible for CARE or FERA, with no home solar and not on net energy metering. You apply online. SCE says new enrollees usually start within one to two billing cycles, but enrollment is unavailable in some areas, which puts you on a waitlist (SCE).
• Clean Power Alliance Power Share. For residential Clean Power Alliance customers on CARE or FERA in a disadvantaged community. It automatically enrolls qualified customers, says it serves more than 10,000, and puts new applicants on a waitlist once capacity is allocated; its number is (888) 585-3788 (Clean Power Alliance).
• Ava Solar Discount. For Ava account holders eligible for CARE or FERA who live in a disadvantaged community, with enrollment automatic (Ava).
• San José Clean Energy Solar Access. For customers enrolled in CARE or FERA in a qualifying community. You apply online or at 833-432-2454. The program was full on September 23, 2026, with a waitlist that San José Clean Energy says typically takes about a month (San José Clean Energy).
• MCE Green Access. For CARE or FERA customers in four ZIP codes (94565, 94801, 94804 and 94590) with no solar on the property. MCE says it is at maximum capacity and not enrolling more customers (MCE).
• Anaheim Community Solar Discount Program. A different design from a city-owned utility: a $20 monthly bill discount for residential customers at or below 80% of Orange County median income, backed by city solar at school sites and the Anaheim Convention Center. Benefits last up to 12 months, and you can reapply 18 months later, subject to available funding (City of Anaheim).

If your provider is not listed, including SDG&E and San Diego Community Power, ask your utility or CCA by name for its DAC Green Tariff or Community Solar Green Tariff program. Los Angeles customers of LADWP have a separate program, covered in LADWP solar programs.

Stacking it with CARE or FERA

The solar discount is added to the CARE or FERA discount, not instead of it. CARE takes 30 to 35 percent off the electric bill and FERA 18 percent, for households under the income limits the CPUC publishes each June (CPUC). San José Clean Energy says the two stacked can reach up to 55 percent savings, and Clean Power Alliance says up to 45 percent. If you are not on CARE or FERA yet, apply for that first through your utility; it is the gate to every program on this page. The income limits and how to apply are in PG&E’s CARE and FERA guide, which applies the same statewide limits.

When a rooftop system makes more sense, and when it cannot

These discounts are designed for households that cannot put solar on their own roof: renters, homes with shaded or failing roofs, and apartments. PG&E, SCE and MCE all exclude customers who already have solar or are on net energy metering, so you generally cannot have both. If you own a single-family home in a disadvantaged community and are income-qualified, the CPUC’s DAC-SASH program pays for a rooftop system instead, with GRID Alternatives running it; see what free solar offers mean and how DAC-SASH works. Renters have more options in solar for renters in California.

A company that calls itself a “solar discount” program but wants to install equipment is selling a lease, PPA or loan, not one of these tariffs. Ask for the administrator’s name and check it against the table above. For every other incentive, start with California solar incentives in 2026 and solar and battery rebates by utility.