Rebate Grant Meeting Notes - A 60% Rejection Rate???

The TCEQ hosted a seminar today in Arlington for dealers and consultants who help people file TERP grant applications. There was a special focus on rebate grants.

The next rebate round is supposed to open in October. They did not give a specific date. It sounded like they have to hammer out some application/contract language, but they are getting close. They did confirm that there will not be an ERIG round until next year - probably in February or March.

Today's meeting was largely explaining the forms which are mostly the same. They also took questions as per usual.

The most interesting factoid of the day was this: in the last rebate grant round the TCEQ rejected 60% of all applications because at least one important field was filled out incorrectly.

In other words, likely qualified applicants either had to re-apply for funds or didn't get any at all because the person doing the paperwork made costly errors.

Until now I've held back on buyer-beware warnings when it comes to TERP grant filing assistance. Since I file for our customers it would have come off the wrong way and sounded like I am saying nobody else is qualified so you should only use ROMCO.

I want to be clear that there are other folks out there who do a good job be they consultants or dealers. Unfortunately, I've also seen people who really don't get the system and they don't exactly warn you of their shortcomings.

We all make mistakes now and then, but 60% is awfully high. The state is trying to reduce that figure by doing these classes and pointing out the items that cause the most trouble.

For the most part it's basic stuff like showing the correct grant amount, putting the correct name in a blank or checking a box here and there.

If you are letting somebody assist you in filing don't be afraid to ask them about their qualifications. When it comes time to sign read over your forms take a few minutes to check for obvious mistakes.

Rebate grant rounds usually end when the money runs out and not when the deadline is reached. Depending on when you file and the level of interest state-wide you may not get a second chance. Consider that when you or somebody else files for your grant money.

Rebate Grants Soon, ERIG Next Year

The state sent out a notice that it is preparing for the next round of TERP rebate grants. They normally send out a 30-day (at least) notice giving everybody a heads-up of grant rounds on the horizon. That notice came last week for rebate grants.

The TCEQ expects the next ERIG TERP application round to be sometime in the Spring of 2010.