Item - 2021.IE26.17

The Infrastructure and Environment Committee recommends that:

1. City Council authorize the extension of the Home Energy Loan Program component of the Residential Energy Retrofit Programs from its current expiration date of December 31, 2021 and make the Program permanent, using existing resources in the Local Improvement Charge Energy Works Reserve Fund, Local Improvement Charge repayments as well as funding provided by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities to support project and programming needs.  

 
2. City Council authorize the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer to establish program interest rates for the Home Energy Loan Program based on the City’s projected indicative cost of borrowing, set on a quarterly basis, for the purposes of recovering the City's cost of borrowing.

 
3. City Council authorize the Director, Environment and Energy to enter into any Property Owner Agreement for the City of Toronto Home Energy Loan Program with consenting property owners for any financing to a maximum of $125,000, inclusive of funding amount, interest and administrative fee, in addition to authority granted previously to the Deputy City Manager, Corporate Services and in a form satisfactory to the City Solicitor.

 
4. City Council authorize the Director, Environment and Energy to review and, where necessary, revise the Home Energy Loan Program from time to time, solely for the purpose of integrating the City's program with industry best practices and new or existing Federal, Provincial and utility company energy, climate change and poverty reduction programs.

Through the Home Energy Loan Program, the City offers low-interest loans to help homeowners make their homes more energy efficient and reduce Greenhouse Gas emissions, in support of the City’s TransformTO climate action strategy and net-zero emissions target.

Current authorization for the program will expire as of December 31, 2021, the purpose of this report is to extend authorization of the Home Energy Loan Program in its current form and to enable continuation of the program with planned Federation of Canadian Municipalities funded changes subject to finalizing an agreement with Federation of Canadian Municipalities.

Extending and enhancing the Home Energy Loan Program program with Federation of Canadian Municipalities funding will help advance the Council-approved Greenhouse Gas reduction efforts established by TransformTO, Toronto's climate action strategy and the net zero ambitions outlined in the Climate Emergency Declaration and most recently the goals of the Net Zero Existing Buildings Strategy adopted by City Council in July 2021.  The Home Energy Loan Program program will also support the City's Net Zero Strategy, being considered by Infrastructure and Environment Committee at its meeting of December 2, 2021.