Our incentives can reduce your out-of-pocket costs
We can help upgrade your facilities and equipment with our Go Electric and efficiency incentives.
Submit an inquiry form and we’ll schedule a free energy assessment for your business. Our team of experts will identify upgrades you can make right now with program incentives and develop a plan for deeper savings down the road. See the program brochure.
Submit an inquiry form View participant handbook
We're discontinuing incentives for new lighting upgrade projects. Lighting projects submitted prior to Aug.15, 2024 must be reserved by Sept. 1, 2024 and completed by June 30, 2025. All lighting projects submitted after Aug. 15, 2024 will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and must be completed by Sept. 30, 2024. No extensions will be granted beyond these dates.
Bundle your upgrades to save more
Your incentive and energy savings increase when you choose to upgrade more than one measure category at a time. Receive a bonus incentive by upgrading from gas to electric equipment.
How does it work?
As an example, a retail store wants to upgrade to new LED lighting. The original incentive for the store’s lighting upgrade is $5,570. When the owner decides to upgrade the HVAC system as well, the lighting incentive increases to $8,100.*
Our energy advisors will help you identify all upgrade and incentive opportunities during your free energy assessment.
Get started today*Each measure category and bundle option has a set incentive rate per kWh. The project’s scope of work will determine the total incentive amount. Incentive funds are finite and are on a first-come, first-served basis for qualifying projects.
Lighting
- SMUD incentive:
- $0.11 per kWh saved for lighting-only projects
- $0.16 per kWh saved when lighting project is combined with at least one other measure category
- Promote safety and security on the interior and exterior of buildings
- Create a more productive and comfortable workspace
- Increase visual appeal of retail and office environments
- Reduce energy and maintenance costs
- Please note, as of January 1, 2024, screw or bayonet base type compact LED lamps are no longer eligible for the CES program.
Refrigeration
- Improve sales by enhancing product appearance
- Avoid risk of losing valuable inventory due to temperature issues with old equipment
- Extend life of the equipment
- Significantly reduce energy and maintenance costs
Heat Pump HVAC
- SMUD incentives for replacing gas equipment with heat pumps:
- $2,000/ton up to 3 tons
- $1,500/ton if over 3 tons
- Lower incentives are available for electric resistance replacements
- View factsheet to learn more
Heat Pump Water heating
- SMUD incentives for replacing gas equipment with heat pumps:
- $4,500 for heat pump water heater (50 - 80 gallons)
- $5,000 for split-system heat pump water heater
- $7,000 for heat pump water heater (> 80 gallons)
- Lower incentives are available for electric resistance replacements
- View factsheet to learn more
Cooking (e.g. ENERGY STAR® commercial ovens)
- SMUD incentives:
- $800 per hob for commercial grade equipment installed at food service businesses (hob is the induction element similar to burner)
- $750 permit residential style cooktop
- View factsheet to learn more
Go Electric
- SMUD Infrastructure Upgrade Stipend
- Customers may receive up to $7,000 on a case-by-case basis for Go Electric projects that require to the meter infrastructure upgrades.
- Upgrade from gas equipment to more advanced, cleaner electric alternatives
- Reduce energy costs by installing more efficient electric equipment
- Heat pump water heaters and HVAC heat pumps can be more than three times more efficient than gas-fired units.
- Induction cooktops are more energy efficient and safer than gas alternatives. They produce zero kitchen pollution and waste less heat, so your kitchen stays cooler.
- Have one electric utility provider and eliminate the need for gas service
- Receive a bonus incentive for upgrading from gas to electric equipment
Plug loads
- Reduce plug loads by installing measures like advanced power strips and vending machines controls
- Reduce energy bills by turning off loads when equipment is not needed
- Protect electronics from surges
- Prevent fires and overheating
Electric vehicle (EV) supply equipment
- SMUD incentives:
- $4,500 per handle installed
- $1,000 to $5,000 per project for infrastructure upgrades to support increased electrical load (requires SMUD evaluation to qualify)
- Install charging stations on your property and receive an incentive from SMUD
- Boost customer traffic by providing EV charging equipment
- Possibly increase revenue and sales due to increased customer traffic
- View factsheet to learn more
Smart Thermostats
- SMUD incentives:
- Smart thermosts incentives are based on the estimated kWh savings for the equipment controlled by the thermostat.
- Access equipment use and termperature data
- Schedule automatic energy-saving temperature based on business operation needs
- Improve comfort by tracking temperature preferences
- Use electricity more efficiently
If you’re ready to start your CES project, please submit an application to the program. Visit our Customer Portal and follow these two steps to apply:
- Create your Customer Energy Solutions profile in the Customer Portal.
- Submit a validation application for the site where you would like the site assessment to take place.
For Go Electric projects, the CES team will request a recent copy of your gas bill.
If you have any questions, email CES@TRCcompanies.com or call 1-844-529-4084.
CES Express for lighting projects
CES Express is available for quick and easy rebates for lighting projects. CES Express replaces the lighting incentive opportunities previously offered through SMUD Express Energy Solutions (EES) program.
All projects that include non-lighting measures (refrigeration, HVAC, water heating, etc.) may be eligible for incentives through the standard CES process, which requires an energy assessment prior to any equipment installation.
CES Express provides the opportunity to receive rebates for LED lighting projects in three easy steps :
- Install eligible LED lighting
- Submit project documentation to express@trccompanies.com
- Receive a rebate after approval
Once submitted, the CES team reviews the project documentation to confirm eligibility, and some projects may be selected for inspection. Please see the CES Contractor and Participant Handbooks for full requirements on CES Express projects.
- Eligible fixtures and rebate amounts
- LED fixture ≤14W ($10)
- LED fixture 15-20W ($15)
- LED fixture 21-35W ($25)
- LED fixture 36-50W ($35)
- LED fixture 51-75W ($45)
- LED fixture 76-125W ($70)
- LED fixture 126-175W ($100)
- LED fixture ≥ 176W ($130)
- Project requirements
- All LED fixtures must be a qualified product on either the Design Light Consortium (DLC) or ENERGY STAR lists.
- CES Express projects cannot receive incentives from other incentive or rebate programs.
- Existing equipment must be decommissioned and removed.
- Lighting equipment must be new.
- As of January 1, 2024, screw or bayonet base type compact LED lamps are no longer eligible for incentives through the CES or CES Express pathways.
- Contractors completing work for CES Express projects must have an active CSLB license and are encouraged to enroll in the CES contractor network. To enroll, contact TRC at CES@trccompanies.com or call 1-844-529-4084.
- How to submit a CES Express application
To apply for a rebate, a contractor or SMUD customer can submit project documentation to express@trccompanies.com. A program representative will respond to your inquiry and guide you on next steps.
A complete CES Express Application includes :
- Project site address, account number and project contact information
- Date the work was installed and operational
- Total project cost
- Total rebate requested (total rebate amount shall be deducted from the sales price of the invoice)
- Complete list of fixture types and quantities installed
- Invoice(s) for each measure installed
- Before photos
- After photos of installed equipment
- Any notes on projects
- W9 (if customer is submitting the project)
For any Express Energy Solutions projects submitted prior to January 17th, 2024, please submit questions to: express.energysolutions@smud.org
Become a CES contractor
Join our contractor network
We're looking for contractors who offer energy efficient, gas-to-electric and electric vehicle charging station solutions. To join our network as a CES contractor, contact TRC Companies at CES@trccompanies.com or 1-844-529-4084.
Case studies
Learn how local businesses are helping create a clean carbon-free future.
Going all-electric is better for your business, your safety and our environment. We’re helping commercial customers make the switch with incentives and energy-efficient solutions that drive energy savings to their bottom lines and promote electrification. Check back as new incentives become available to help you build safer, healthier and cheaper.
Stanford Settlement completed a comprehensive upgrade to their space and water heating systems, installing all-electric heat pumps across the organization’s working spaces, where they offer afterschool programs, enrichment activities and emergency assistance to those in need.
View case study
The Capital Christian Center is electrifying their 60-acre campus by replacing gas equipment with all-electric heat pumps and removing up to 99% of the existing gas lines. Partnering with SMUD, Capital Christian has already received over $175,000 in incentives to install electric HVAC heat pumps and lighting retrofits.
View case study
In partnership with SMUD’s CES program, MTI College received over $3,000 in incentives to install 34 smart thermostats across campus. These thermostats allow MTI College to participate in automated demand response (ADR) programs, to help scale back energy use when demand for electricity is high. Participating in ADR will help MTI College save an estimated 23,460 kWh annually, and they have plans for additional upgrades including electric HVAC pump systems and LED lighting.
View case study
As both a contractor partner of the CES program and a program participant, Sierra Valley Mechanical has converted gas equipment to electric heat pumps to help reduce carbon emissions. With incentives over $2,000, Sierra Valley Mechanical replaced the gas furnaces at their offices with two mini-split heat pump systems, saving an estimated 20 tons of carbon emissions.
View case study
WellSpace health, a local non-profit providing healthcare to the greater Sacramento region, recently made upgrades to LED lighting at multiple facilities and learned about Go Electric incentives. WellSpace leveraged over $6,000 in incentives to replace their gas water heater with a highly efficient heat pump water heater at a low cost. Their estimated annual savings are 5,410 kWh, and they now have plans to install smart thermostats and explore EV charging incentives.
View case studyChildren’s Receiving Home (CRH) received nearly $14k in incentives from CES for their Go-electric project in 2022. CRH has partnered with SMUD to replace all of their gas HVAC units with energy-efficient electric heat pumps over the next seven years.
View case study