PORT ANGELES — The Port Angeles City Council accepted a clean energy grant that will provide eligible utility customers with a $200 credit for a transition to clean energy.
The council also approved recommendations for the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee on Tuesday and an ordinance altering bed and breakfast licensing requirements.
The Washington Families Clean Energy Credits grant allocates $439,890.80 to Port Angeles for utility arrearages for eligible residential customers.
Funds are only eligible for residential accounts that meet low to moderate income thresholds, meaning they are less than 150 percent of the area median income.
The program also prioritizes customers who have participated in either the low-income home energy assistance program or the ratepayer-funded assistance programs, or customers who have an established utility payment plan.
Customers don’t need to apply for funding, although they may fill out an eligibility self-attestation form. Utility credits will be applied directly to accounts of eligible residential customers.
The city may use up to 5 percent of the grant funds for administrative costs associated with the disbursement of the funds, not to exceed $21,994.54.
The grant money comes from $150 million that the state allocated toward clean energy credits in April 2024.
The grant money must be distributed by Sept. 15.
The council members also unanimously approved the 2024 Lodging Tax Advisory Committee budget amendment recommendations.
Deputy Mayor Navarra Carr recused herself from the vote because her partner had submitted one of the applications. Council member Brendan Meyer had an excused absence.
The Lodging Tax Advisory Committee recommended the council approve $144,500 in changes to the LTAX Fund budget. The money will be taken from the $89,500 remaining in the 2024 budget and will use $55,000 in LTAX reserves.
The funding will support two capital projects, three operations projects and six events.
Council members also voted 5-1 to pass an ordinance to alter city fire-life safety inspections for bed and breakfasts. Council member Amy Miller dissented.
The ordinance removed the city-conducted inspection requirement for bed and breakfasts. In lieu of city inspections, bed and breakfasts must upload their Clallam County Department of Health kitchen inspection and their state bed and breakfast inspection documentation.
The ordinance also reduced the fee for bed and breakfast business licensing from $457.50 to $192.20.
City staff identified two potential challenges in passing the ordinance.
First, they worried that short term rental operators might use the bed-and-breakfast license process to get around the city’s cap of 200 short term rentals (STRs), or around the restrictions of one STR license per person, one STR license per parcel. Second, they worried that any changes to the requirements on the live application site could impact their ability to meet deadlines and milestones required by city code.
Council member Lindsey Schromen-Wawrin said “any complex policy requires cleanup and tinkering.”
Council members also briefly discussed allowing individuals who already were operating multiple legally compliant STRs before the 2024 code change to be exempt from the requirement of one license per parcel, one license per person.
The council may bring that issue onto a future agenda.
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Reporter Emma Maple can be reached by email at emma.maple@peninsuladailynews.com.
