California Climate Investments are focused on providing benefits to California’s disadvantaged communities and low-income communities and households, collectively referred to as priority populations. The draft benefit assessment tools are used to help decide if a project benefits a priority population.
Background
What are they and how are they used?
The draft benefit assessment tools serve as an update to the benefit criteria tables, which are used to help decide if a project provides benefits to a priority population.
Whenever possible, California Climate Investments projects should have direct, meaningful, and assured benefits to priority populations. California Climate Investments recognizes a project as benefiting a priority population if it meets one option in each of the three steps of the benefit assessment tool. There are different benefit assessment tools for different project types and they each contain the following steps:
Step 1: Identify the Priority Population. The project must be located within a community identified as disadvantaged or low-income, or directly benefit residents of a low-income household;
Step 2: Identify a Need. The project must identify an important community and household need for the priority population(s) identified in Step 1; and
Step 3: Provide a Benefit. The project must provide at least one of the direct, meaningful, and assured benefits listed in Step 3. The benefit must be to the priority population(s) identified in Step 1 and must directly address the need identified in Step 2.
Who uses them?
The tools are primarily used by administering agencies to report project information to California Climate Investments. Though, in some cases, applicants and funding recipients also use them. For instance, some agencies ask applicants to include the tools in their applications.
Why are they important?
It is inherently important to prioritize and maximize benefits to priority populations, as they are the most impacted and affected by climate change. To ensure these communities and households are supported by California Climate Investments, statute requires that 35% of investment dollars are allocated to priority populations. The benefit assessment tool helps us understand how projects are benefiting priority populations.
Per SB 535 and AB 1550, California Climate Investments must be allocated as follows:
At least 25% of funds must be invested in projects that are located within and benefiting disadvantaged communities
At least 5% must be invested in projects located within and benefiting individuals in low-income communities or benefiting low-income households statewide
At least 5% must be invested in projects located within and benefiting individuals within low-income communities, or low-income households, that are outside of a disadvantaged community.
Review Draft Tools
In December 2024, CARB published the updated Funding Guidelines for Agencies Administering California Climate Investments. The benefit assessment tool is a component of the Funding Guidelines. To reflect the update to the Funding Guidelines, CARB staff updated the benefit assessment tools, formerly known as benefit criteria tables, and the drafts are now available for public review.
Select a project type to view the corresponding draft benefit assessment tool. Each tool is designed to be used together with the resources available on the Benefit Assessment Tool Companion Guide page.
Note: All administering agencies, project recipients, and other users will continue to use the published benefit criteria tables during public comment. Once the final benefit assessment tools are published in early 2025, any project selected following the publish date must use the benefit assessment tools. Projects selected before the release of the benefit assessment tool may use the benefit assessment tool if desired.
Public Participation Opportunities
Public Comment
Do you have feedback on the draft benefit assessment tools or ideas on how they can be improved? Whether you are new to California Climate Investments or have received project funding, we welcome your comments and look forward to hearing your perspective. CARB will be accepting public comments on the draft benefit assessment tools through January 17, 2024. Email your comments or use the form at the bottom of the page.
Virtual Q&A
In addition to public comment, we invite you to register for an upcoming Virtual Q&A on the updates to the benefit assessment tools. During the Virtual Q&A, you can ask questions, share your ideas, and learn more about the updates. After registering, California Climate Investments staff will follow-up with a timeslot within the Q&A hour of your choice for a one-on-one discussion.
You can choose to attend one or more of the following sessions: