Previous Community Benefits Grant recipients are eligible to apply for the 2025-2026 grant . However, previous grant recipients are ineligible to receive funds more than two years in a row.  

The CBG is available to projects and organizations focused on advancing clean energy, sustainability, and resiliency through the following pathways:

• Research
• Resilience
• Environmental and Social Justice Communities*
• Workforce Development
• Education
  * The CPUC identified environmental and social justice communities as those where residents are:
  • • • • Predominantly communities of color or low-income
        • Underrepresented in the policy setting or decision-making process
        • Subject to a disproportionate impact from one or more environmental hazards and
        • Likely to experience disparate implementation of environmental regulations and socioeconomic investments in their communities

• • On the ground, targeted communities typically include but are not limited to:
    • • • Disadvantaged Communities, located in the most environmentally burdened California census tracts, as determined by the 25 percent highest scores (75th percentile) when using the CalEnviroScreen tool
        • All Tribal lands
        • Low-income households (household incomes below 80 percent of the area median income) and
        • Low-income census tracts (census tracts where aggregated household incomes are less than 80 percent of area or state median income).

Awards will range from $15,000 to $30,000 for a one-year grant term.

• September 2, 2025 grant opens. 
• August 13, 2025 from 1–2 pm — Community Benefits Grant webinar. View a recording of the webinar here.
• September 30, 2025 by 5 pm — All applications and relevant attachments are due. 
• October through November — Application evaluation period
• December — Awardees contacted.
• Grant funds will be processed for distribution in December

Completed applications and all relevant attachments can be submitted no later than 5 pm on September 30, 2025

A budget is required as part of a completed application. Applicants can complete attachment A, or they can submit a supplemental budget. If an applicant is working with a fiscal sponsor, the fiscal sponsor must also submit the following documents:   

• A fiscal sponsorship letter taking responsibility for your organization’s fiscal administration.  

• A letter of request authorizing your organization to apply for the community benefits grant for the amount you are requesting. 

Awardees of the Community Benefits Grant must agree to provide the following: 

1. Eight-month post-award status report, including pictures and videos, a statement of expenditures to date, and a description of the progress of the project, as applicable.
2. One-year post-award interview, including pictures and videos, a statement of expenditures, and a project wrap-up summary.

Note: During this interview, CPA, Calpine Community Energy, and the grant recipients’ staff will discuss the status of granted projects and their local impact. 

The Community Benefits Grant is an annual grant. The next grant opportunity will open in September 2026. Sign up for CPA’s monthly newsletter to be informed when additional grant funds will be available. Visit www.cleanpoweralliance.org/#newsletter  to join CPA’s newsletter mailing list for more information.

Calpine Community Energy awards the grant funding, while Clean Power Alliance determines the grant guidelines and project criteria and helps engage nonprofit organizations to apply for funding. Both entities work together to assess grant applications.

The Community Benefits Grant is an annual grant. The next grant opportunity will open in September 2026. 

Sign up for CPA’s monthly newsletter to be informed when additional grant funds will be available. Visit www.cleanpoweralliance.org/#newsletter to join the mailing list.