Inclusive Community Solar Adder

The Inclusive Community Solar Adder (ICSA) is available for community solar projects serving low-to-moderate income (LMI) subscribers, affordable housing, and other facilities serving disadvantaged communities . The goal of the ICSA is to increase access to community solar and resulting electric bill savings for LMI households and to reduce operating costs for affordable housing and nonprofit entities serving disadvantaged communities. The ICSA initially launched on July 20, 2021 and Round 1 closed on June 7, 2022. The following information applies to Round 2 which launched on October 12, 2023 and is currently accepting applications.

Project Eligibility

To be eligible for the ICSA, projects must meet the following:

Be metered as CDG
Meet the requirements of the NY-Sun Commercial/Industrial or NY-Sun Nonresidential Program
Be in “Approved” status
- Projects that achieved commercial operation approval from the utility after June 7, 2022, but before October 12, 2023 are also eligible to apply for Round 2 of ICSA
Dedicate no less than 40% of the project capacity (Wdc) to Eligible Subscribers, and dedicate no less than 50% of the ICSA portion of the project capacity (Wdc) to eligible residential subscribers.
- Details on how to demonstrate the project capacity requirements can be found in the Program Manual.

Projects located in the PSEG-Long Island territory are not eligible for the ICSA. Projects that were awarded the ICSA in Round 1 are prohibited from withdrawing their application(s) and resubmitting for Round 2 funding levels. Projects that applied for but were not awarded the ICSA in Round 1 are eligible to apply for Round 2. Projects will be required to cancel their ICSA award if they are selected and choose to enroll in the Expanded Solar for All Program.

Eligible projects may receive the ICSA in addition to any NY-Sun incentive or adders for which they are eligible, with the exception of the Multifamily Affordable Housing Adder.

Incentive Levels

The ICSA funding that a project may claim is determined by the capacity allocated to eligible subscribers, with different incentive rates for different types of projects. The adder rates and initial capacity blocks detailed in the table below apply only to the capacity allocated to eligible subscribers.

Region	Project Type	Adder ($/Watt)	Adder Capacity Block (MW)
Upstate	CDG project Received MW Block and/or Community Adder Minimum guaranteed discount of 10% ≥50% of ICSA capacity filled with Eligible Residential Subscribers	$0.10	860 MW
Upstate	CDG project Received Phase One NEM, the Market Transition Credit, or the Community Credit Minimum guaranteed discount of 10% ≥50% of ICSA capacity filled with Eligible Residential Subscribers	$0.05	860 MW
Con Edison	CDG Project Minimum guaranteed discount of 10% ≥50% of ICSA capacity filled with Eligible Residential Subscribers	$0.20	100 MW

Community Benefit Projects

A higher incentive is available for Upstate and Con Edison projects that qualify as Community Benefit Projects. These projects provide a higher bill discount, incorporate measures that increase access to community solar, and demonstrate a greater commitment to Eligible Subscribers and their surrounding communities. Projects can either provide a 20% bill discount to all eligible subscribers and meet at least 3 of the following criteria; or provide a 15% bill discount and meet all 5 of the following criteria.

Demonstrated close partnerships with community organizations and stakeholders from the disadvantaged community local to the project site throughout the project development process, including siting, construction, and customer outreach.
Workforce training and hiring commitments of Priority Populations or members of the surrounding disadvantaged community.
Community based or participant ownership models.
Dedicated strategy to target individuals in disadvantaged communities with Limited English Proficiency.
Sited within a disadvantaged community and serving eligible subscribers in the surrounding community.

Specific requirements on how to meet the community benefit project criteria is detailed in the Program Manual.

Incentive rates for projects that meet the requirements to be a Community Benefit Project vary by project type and are detailed in the table below. The adder rates apply only to the capacity allocated to eligible subscribers and the capacity will be drawn from the applicable block listed in the table above.

Region	Project Type	Adder ($/Watt)
Upstate	CDG project that received MW Block and/or Community Adder ≥50% of ICSA capacity filled with Eligible Residential Subscribers Minimum guaranteed discount of 20% for providing 3 criteria, or 15% for providing all 5. Achieves all the requirements to qualify as a Community Benefit Project	$0.20
Upstate	CDG project that received Phase One NEM, the Market Transition Credit, or the Community Credit ≥50% of ICSA capacity filled with Eligible Residential Subscribers Minimum guaranteed discount of 20% for providing 3 criteria, or 15% for providing all 5. Achieves all the requirements to qualify as a Community Benefit Project	$0.15
Con Edison	CDG Project Minimum guaranteed discount of 20% for providing 3 criteria, or 15% for providing all 5. ≥50% of ICSA capacity filled with Eligible Residential Subscribers Achieves all the requirements to qualify as a Community Benefit Project	$0.30

ICSA - Available Funding

Applications submitted after October 12, 2023 will be reviewed and funded in the order they are received until all available funding is fully committed. For ICSA applications linked to NY-Sun projects in “Submitted” or “Received” status, the ICSA application will not be approved, and its review will be deprioritized, until approval of the associated NY-Sun project.

ICSA availability is shown below. The dashboards indicate the percentage of MWs that have been submitted to that block. The dashboards are updated as applications are submitted.

Upstate Community Solar Projects

Con Edison Community Solar Projects

Community Benefit Projects

High Performance Fund - Available Funding

Projects that allocate more than 60% of their project capacity to Eligible Subscribers are eligible to receive additional funds at the ICSA rate for the applicable project type for that additional capacity, pending fund availability. See the Program Manual for more information.

The dashboards below indicate the percentage of funding allocated from the high performance fund for each region. The dashboards are updated as Milestone 1 invoices are paid.

Upstate High Performance Fund

Con Edison High Performance Fund

Get Started

To participate in the Inclusive Community Solar Adder Program, a NY-Sun Participating Contractor must submit an application in the NYSERDA Portal .

Complete details on the Inclusive Community Solar Adder can be found in the NY-Sun Program Manual.
All program documents, including the ICSA Application Guide, can be found on NY-Sun’s Resources for Contractors page in the “Inclusive Community Solar Adder Resources” section.
All webinar recordings and presentation slides may also be found on NY-Sun’s Resources for Contractors page in the “Stakeholder Meeting Updates” section.

For questions, please email [email protected].