What is the Connector?

The Clean Energy Connector makes community solar subscriptions with savings more accessible to households participating in government-run low-income support programs, specifically Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) recipients. To get involved or learn more about the Connector please contact us.

September 1, 2021 - Flowers grow along some of the rows at Jack's Solar Garden in Longmont, Colo, to attract pollinators such as honeybees, bumble bees, and butterflies. Jack's is a 1.2-MW, five-acre community solar farm and is the largest agrivoltaic research project in the U.S. The solar project was designed and built by Namasté Solar. Photo by Werner Slocum / NREL

Development and Pilot Testing

Developed and maintained with funding from the Solar Energy Technologies Office within the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, learn more about the Clean Energy Connector on the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) website. The Connector is currently being soft launched in three states – the District of Columbia, Illinois, and New Mexico – and is available to pilot subscription managers and local LIHEAP administrators in these states. New users can create accounts and use the Connector only upon request and approval by their participating state agencies.

Developed in Collaboration with our Partners

U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm
Renewable energy is by far the cheapest form of power and now, thanks to innovative solutions developed under the Biden-Harris Administration, more households across America can access the health and savings benefits that solar power provides... DOE's partnership with HHS will increase the deployment of community solar, helping thousands of families lower their energy bills and in turn reduce their energy burden, ensuring Americans across the nation are included as we transition to a clean energy economy.
U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra
LIHEAP keeps families and individuals safe and healthy by providing heating assistance in the winter and cooling assistance in the summer... Connecting LIHEAP-eligible households with the benefits and bill-savings of community solar will also have a lasting impact and provide increased economic security for families.
U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra

Join the Connector

At present, the District of Columbia, Illinois, and New Mexico are the only states/regions that have officially signed on to use the Connector. If you are a representative of another state and are interested in joining the Connector, please contact us through the form below.

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The National Renewable Energy Laboratory is a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy LLC.

Clean Energy Connector
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Clean Energy Connector

Community Solar Savings to Income-Verified Households

April 24, 2021 - Meg Caley (right), executive director and co-founder of Sprout City Farms helps out during a tour at the farming ground-breaking event at Jack's Solar Garden in Longmont, Colo. Sprout City Farms is the main partner of Jack's Solar Garden. Visitors to the event had the opportunity to tour the farm, learn about agrivoltaics, and take part in various farm-related activities. Colorado state representatives Sonya Jaquez Lewis, Tracey Bernett, and Colorado Department of Agriculture Energy Specialist Sam Anderson were also in attendance to show their support. Jack's Solar Garden is the largest crop-focused dedicated agrivoltaics site in the country. (Photo by Werner Slocum / NREL)

Empowering Income-Verified Households with Solar Energy Across the Country

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