Housing will distribute a second round of $30,000 vouchers for the installation of solar panels

Secretary to benefit an additional 6,000 low-income families Housing DepartmentWilliam Rodriguez confirmed that the second round of requesting $30,000 vouchers for the installation of solar panels will be available starting January 31.

The official explained that citizens will be able to access New Energy Program website From 8:00 AM on the above day, where 4,000 tickets will be available to continue the application process.

Also, you can call 1-833-234-2324, which will have 1,000 tickets to issue, or visit one of the 10 program centers, located in the municipalities of Caguas, Fajardo, Ponce, Yabucoa, Orocovis, San Juan is , Mayagüez, Vega Alta, Aguadilla and Hatillo. 100 tickets will be available at each centre.

To get a ticket, families must submit some basic information such as name, income and contact information, as well as a quote from one of the 88 solar panel suppliers or installers authorized to participate in the program.

In the first round of assistance, applicants had 120 days to submit a quote as part of the process to complete the voucher application, but now they must do so sooner.

“We realized that this (quotation) was one of the factors that delayed the families’ request. So now we are adding requirement of quote from suppliers. The quote is free. Suppliers cannot charge for this quote, as it is part of the contracts we have in the program“, the official elaborated in an interview with new day.

On this occasion, families who, depending on their family composition, have an income between $33,600 (one person) and $63,400 (eight people) will be eligible.

“They are still low-income people, but we are approaching 80% of the income limit set by the federal Department of Housing,” the official said.

Once they receive a ticket, applicants will continue to have 120 days to prove their income, that they are an American citizen, or have legal permission to remain in the territory of the United States, and that they own the residence where the installation will be performed.

Likewise, the home must be single-family and the citizen’s principal residence. The process can be completed on the program’s website or at one of the centers.

As happened in the first round of voucher distribution, Rodriguez expects the tickets to be sold out in less than an hour, so he urged citizens to get the documents in time.

“Now we have double the number of tickets (6,000), but on the first occasion the total tickets were gone in 45 minutes. In the San Juan area, however, they sold out in 10 minutes,” he said.

How are the features going?

Asked how the facilities of the 3,000 people who benefited in the first round are going, the Housing Secretary clarified that 2,098 people have signed contracts with the agency. Out of that total, only 398 households already have solar panel systems installed in their residences.

Meanwhile, about 1,000 families continue to wait for the housing suitability or environmental determination process to be completed.

“We should have covered all the people in the month of January, because only 162 were ineligible,” Rodriguez declared.

In the case of the Solar Incentive Program, which last year offered a voucher that would cover 30% of the cost of a solar energy system, or up to $15,000, the official acknowledged that they are moving slowly.

To request this help, families signed a contract with the solar panel installation company when requesting the ticket.

“The process of completing the process has been very slow, because they must get financing, which always takes longer,” he said.

According to Rodriguez, of the 6,000 families who received tickets under the program, only 2,000 have completed their applications to date, while 394 have signed contracts with the agency. No installations have been completed under this program yet.

overall, New Energy and Solar Incentives are supported by $450 million in federal funds.

“This grant seeks to achieve resilience in families and to keep them connected, connected and connected in times of crisis. “They can attend to health problems, stock medicines and connect any kind of assistance required to save lives,” the secretary said.