Implementing the Whole Neighborhood Approach for PG&E’s Low Income Energy Efficiency Program in a Rural Town: Firebaugh, CA Case Study CPUC Whole Neighborhood Approach Workshop July 21, 2009

LIEE Process Overview Program Year 2009

3 PG&E’s LIEE Marketing & Outreach PG&E’s Energy Partners program team is integrating marketing and outreach with other Company community messaging PG&E created an LIEE outreach team to coordinate WNA events and other outreach activities PG&E Outreach efforts include: – CARE Community Outreach Contractors (COCs) – Direct mailings and bill inserts – Participation in local community events, presentations – Job fairs, CPUC “We CARE” Days – Grassroots media – Partnerships with government agencies and community organizations Collaboration partners include: – City of Madera – County of Madera – City of Firebaugh – SMUD – Modesto Irrigation District (MID) – Oakland Housing Authority (OHA) – California Department of Social Services – City of San Joaquin

4 LIEE Contractor Marketing & Outreach Contractors also perform outreach in targeted neighborhoods, including: – Phone calls to potential LIEE participants – Door-to-door canvassing – Door hangers – Presentations and participation at community events – Flyers Contractors hire their staff from the local communities Contractors tailor their approaches to the areas they are working in

5 Enrolling LIEE Customers: Process to Enroll Typical Home Contractors arrive at potential participant home: – With previously-made appointment – Through door-to-door neighborhood sweep Income qualification performed at the initial home visit. – Contractor verifies income documentation. – Contractors income-qualify all LIEE participants, with limited exceptions: Customers that are categorically enrolled. Customers in neighborhoods where at least 80% of residents are estimated by latest census data to live at 200% or less of Federal Poverty Level. Home assessment and energy education also performed during initial home visit. Contractor explains process and anticipated timelines. Contractor installs simple measures. Contractor makes appointments for other more specialized work and large appliance delivery.

6 Treating LIEE Customers: Timelines Contractors have 30 calendar days to make an appointment after receiving a referral from PG&E or RHA – On average, appointments are made in about 16 calendar days Contractors have 14 calendar days to install measures, plus time to data enter it – 64% of the jobs meet these timeline standards this year – Reasons for the other 36% include: Homes requiring special-order parts and appliances (especially for mobile homes) Homes requiring advanced services (like Duct Test and Seal, Furnace Repair & Replacement, Attic insulation, specialty glass, Gas Service Repair-person inspections for repair and furnace relights Customer-requested appointment times that are further out Customer no-shows – Approximately 6% of these are eventually cancelled completely

7 PG&E LIEE Contractors PG&E’s LIEE contractors include private firms, CBOs, LIHEAP providers, appliance installation contractors, and furnace / water heater repair and replacement / AC contractors PG&E LIEE contractors are assigned geographic areas to work in (broken out by ZIP code) to minimize effort and maximize efficiency – Contractors have specific monthly and annual goals. There are frequent contractor communications – Communication and follow-up between PG&E, RHA and implementation contractors occurs daily – Monthly Contractor Meetings – tips and lessons learned are distributed – Field visits Select customer data (including CARE status and previous LIEE participation) is shared with contractors to help them recruit participants PG&E provides training and update training PG&E and RHA conduct regular random inspections of work RHA maintains customer contact center, providing assistance to both customers and contractors.

8 Energy Partners Online (EPO) Database PG&E built a new, real-time, web-based database in 2003 – EPO facilitates daily, monthly, and weekly monitoring, reporting, and forecasting Contractors enter ongoing and completed work into EPO database daily, including: – Appointments – Measures to be installed – Actual installations – Notes and follow-up comments – Housing and demographic data Invoicing occurs from installations entered into database when contractor completes home EPO generates inspections on completed homes

9 Inspections PG&E inspectors conduct follow-up inspections on randomly-selected homes, per the Statewide LIEE P&P Manual requirements – Inspect quality and correctness of installation – Inspect that all reported work is installed – Inspect that all feasible measures were installed Contractors are required to complete or correct all inspection fails PG&E monitors contractor failure rates and increases/decreases frequency of contractor inspections based on installation quality Frequent failures could also lead to additional training and penalties PG&E monitors both frequency and failure type, and if necessary PG&E may make training curriculum changes PG&E’s LIEE program administrator, RHA, also performs random contractor field and file inspections Once a home is designated complete in EPO, it is counted as a treated home.

10 Integration and Coordination With Other PG&E Programs CARE – LIEE integrates with CARE’s successful marketing and outreach initiatives. – LIEE & CARE integrate program functions and activities such as income verification to increase program cost efficiencies between both programs. Local Government Partnership and Third Party Initiatives – Installations are completed under one program umbrella that is seamless to customers, but paid and tracked appropriately to LIEE or LGP or TPI – Energy Watch participated in the Firebaugh event

WNA Rural Case Study: Firebaugh, CA Event conducted June 11, 2009

12 Firebaugh, CA (Fresno County) PG&E conducted a WNA LIEE enrollment event in Firebaugh on June 11, 2009 at the weekly evening Farmers Market Firebaugh selected as a small, hard-hit rural Central Valley town Approximately 5,600 residents Approximately 40-50% unemployment – Spanish speaking farmworker residents – Irrigation cut off due to drought and economic conditions resulting in massive unemployment Neighborhood Targeted (County, Zip code, Zip+7, census-tract, etc.) Total Residential Customers Total Estimated Eligible Total Treated Treated Through WNA To Date Firebaugh, Fresno County (Zip 93622) 2,307 1,411 1,005 63

13 Market Segmentation and Targeted Outreach PG&E ranked ZIP-7 and other census-defined areas by percent of LIEE estimated eligibility – Areas with the high estimates of LIEE eligibility – Low previous LIEE participation Firebaugh, CA is in a “red” Central Valley area

14 Pre-publicity for Firebaugh LIEE Enrollment Event Extensive pre-publicity: – PG&E sent over 1,300 bilingual letters to previously untreated Firebaugh residents – 2,000 bilingual flyers were distributed to students in collaboration with the Firebaugh School District – The school district conducted bilingual robo- calls to student families about the PG&E LIEE enrollment event – Flyers and phone calls made to local small business owners – PG&E worked with Radio Bilingue to promote the event 5 days before the Farmers Market – Promotoras provided additional outreach and event support 3,000 attendees – Many participants brought PG&E letter and/or income documentation or their bill with them Results: – 72 LIEE sign-ups at the event – 63 LIEE completed homes to date – 94 CARE enrollments (15 new) – 10 Energy Watch sign-ups

15 Firebaugh Selection and Event Preparation PG&E spent 2½ months working with PG&E Government Relations and local PG&E staff to coordinate the Firebaugh event. Extensive meetings with internal PG&E staff, City of Firebaugh employees, and state and federal government representatives. – Approximately 30 PG&E, city of Firebaugh and local community agency staff attended the event: LIEE CARE REACH Lifeline Energy Watch Firebaugh City Manager José Antonio Ramírez PG&E contractor staff (who is also the local LIHEAP provider) Other community agencies, including: the American Lung Association and the National Parks Conservation Association Congressman Jim Costa’s aides – The City of Firebaugh donated booth space and canopies, and PG&E rented tables and chairs.

16 Rural Challenges Homes are farther apart outside of town Appointment no-shows decrease likelihood of finding fill-ins due to distance between customers and having already booked appointments with neighbors – Sending appointment reminder cards or making a reminder phone call becomes very important to help decrease no-shows Event planning takes far longer than expected to accommodate multiple staff schedules – PG&E invited approximately 10 community agencies to participate. Due to location and timing only 2 agencies replied that they were able to attend.

17 Firebaugh Successes The Firebaugh Farmers Market LIEE Enrollment Event raised the level of awareness and visibility of the LIEE program with both local agencies and the community in a hard-to-reach rural area. PG&E developed relationships with local governments, internal PG&E departments and external agencies.