During Monday’s regular Council meeting, the Clean Energy Improvement Program Tax Bylaw 29-23 was brought forward for a public hearing and was approved by Okotoks Council. This Bylaw allows the Town to offer a Clean Energy Improvement Program (CEIP) to its residents and provides guidelines for how the program will operate in Okotoks.
The program is completely voluntary and creates the opportunity for residential property owners to apply for a low interest loan in order to complete energy efficiency and renewable energy renovations such as tankless water heaters and solar PV systems to their homes.
The program will be administered by the Town of Okotoks, in partnership with Alberta Municipalities and is made possible through funding and grants from the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.
“This is an exciting opportunity for Okotoks residents who are interested in implementing clean energy improvements in their home,” said Okotoks Mayor, Tanya Thorn. “It is also a positive step forward in the Town’s work towards environmental leadership and our Climate Action Plan targets for energy efficiency.”
Only property owners who have chosen to participate in CEIP would see an increase on their annual property tax bill based on the amount borrowed from the Town to finance the property improvements. The additional CEIP tax is added to the participant’s annual tax bill until the CEIP financing is repaid. Those who have not participated in the program would not see any CEIP charges on their property tax bill.
The program is expected to launch in early 2024. Visit ceip.abmunis.ca to learn more about CEIP or find more information at okotoks.ca/ceip.