Primary Department: County Administration
Primary Department Head/Elected Official: Jesse Dickerman, Interim County Administrator
Secondary Department: Choose an item.
Secondary Department Head/Elected Official:
Regular or Supplemental RCA: Regular RCA
Type of Request: Interlocal Agreement
Project ID (if applicable): EECBG_CLMT
Vendor/Entity Legal Name (if applicable): Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station
MWBE Contracted Goal (if applicable):
MWBE Current Participation (if applicable):
Justification for 0% MWBE Participation Goal: N/A - Goal not applicable to request
Grant Indirect Costs Rate (if applicable): N/A
Justification for 0% Grant Indirect Costs Rate (if applicable): N/A - Not a grant item
Request Summary (Agenda Caption):
title
Request for approval to execute an interlocal agreement with Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (TEES) using EECBG Grant funds in the amount of $134,855 for an urban agrivoltaics study for Harris County.
end
Background and Discussion:
In February 2022, the Office of County Administration transmitted a Clean Energy Strategy to Commissioners Court addressing how to make the County more resilient with the use of new energy systems. One potential avenue involved the use of public land to host energy infrastructure. This study will investigate how producing local energy paired with urban agricultural practices (agrivoltaics) can serve multiple benefits, including clean electricity production, education, and community involvement. This study will be funded with federal funds from the Department of Energy’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG).
Expected Impact:
This study will provide a comparative high-level analysis of sites and rank their suitability for different agrivoltaics settings and community engagement potential as well as site assessment details. It will also provide potential pathways for implementing the recommendations.
Alternative Options:
To not approve this ILA and risk not fully spending down the County’s EECBG funds before they expire on September 30, 2026.
County Strategic Plan Goal: 5. Minimize the impact of climate change and disasters.
County Strategic Plan Objective: Q: Encourage residents, businesses, and public entities to significantly reduce their environmental footprint for the health of our region.
Justice/Safety Initiative (Goal 1): Choose an item.
Infrastructure Initiative (Goal 2): Choose an item.
Economy Initiative (Goal 3): Choose an item.
Health Initiative (Goal 4): Choose an item.
Climate/Resilience Initiative (Goal 5): Q2: Increase energy resilience of Harris County through deployment of affordable, reliable community solar.
Housing Initiative (Goal 6): Choose an item.
Additional notes related to the Strategic Plan:
Prior Court Action (if any):
|
Date |
Agenda Item # |
Action Taken |
|
3/14/23 |
193 |
Request by the Office of County Administration for approval to submit a grant pre-application to the U.S. Department of Energy in the amount of $1,636,340, with no required match, for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant. |
|
4/25/23 |
179 |
Request by the Office of County Administration for approval to submit an application to the U.S. Department of Energy for grant funds in the amount of $1,636,340, with no required match, for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program. |
|
10/10/23 |
194 |
Request by the Office of County Administration for approval to accept from the U.S. Department of Energy grant funds in the amount of $1,636,340, with no required match, for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG). |
Location:
Address (if applicable): N/A
Precinct(s): Countywide
|
Fiscal and Personnel Summary |
|
Service Name |
Sustainability |
|
|
|
Current Fiscal Year Cost |
Annual Fiscal Cost |
|
|
Labor |
Non-Labor |
Total |
Recurring Expenses |
|
Funding Sources |
|
|
Existing Budget |
|
|
|
|
|
Grant |
$ |
$134,855 |
$134,855 |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Existing Budget |
$ |
$134,855 |
$134,855 |
$ |
|
Additional Budget Request (Requires Fiscal Review Request Form) |
|
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Additional Budget Request |
$ |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
Total Funding Sources |
$ |
$134,855 |
$134,855 |
$ |
|
Grants - Proposed Budget (For Grants Items only) |
|
|
Labor |
Non-Labor |
Total |
No. of Grant Years |
|
Local Match Source - Existing Budget: Grant |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
Local Match Source - Additional Budget Request: Choose an item. |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
Grant Funds Applied for/Awarded (Total) |
$ |
$ |
$ |
|
|
Personnel (Fill out section only if requesting new Position Control Numbers (PCN)s) |
|
|
Current Position Count for Service |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
Additional Positions Request |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
Total Personnel |
- |
- |
- |
- |
|
County Attorney’s Office Legal Review (for Harris County Code Items only) |
|
CAO Reviewer Name and Title |
|
CAO Review Completion Date |
Click or tap to enter a date. |
Anticipated Court Date: 11/13/2025
Anticipated Implementation Date (if different from Court date): Click or tap to enter a date.
Emergency/Disaster Recovery Note: Not an emergency, disaster, or ARPA related item
Contact(s) name, title, department: Lisa Lin, Director of Sustainability, Office of County Administration
Attachments (if applicable): ILA with TEES