Background: Since 1980, California has had approximately 46 weather and climate disasters in which damages per event reached or exceeded $1 billion, resulting in an estimated $100 to 200 billion in damages (Oceanic and Administration, 2025). Each of these events has caused substantial damage and lasting repercussions in the affected areas. Severe weather events and power outages can exacerbate existing racial, financial, and energy inequities (Do et al., 2023; Miles et al., 2014). Barreca et al. (2022) found that when low-income households experience extreme heat days of 95°F or higher, electricity expenses increase by 1.6% and there is a 1.2% increase in the chance of disconnection. Low-income households already spend three times more of their income on energy costs compared to non-low-income households, 8.1% to 2.3% (Drehobl et al., 2020), which further exacerbates their financial burden. A study on the impacts of Hurricane Maria found that Black and rural communities were the last to experience power restoration in Puerto Rico (Sotolongo et al., 2021). McPherson et al. (2023)found a similar trend, with non-white communities and the poorest communities experiencing a disproportionate share of power loss during the 2021 Texas winter storm. Miles et al. (2014) found that low-income households face greater risks due to longer power outage discontinuities and more significant economic impacts.

Methodology: Step 1: Identify the number of utilities and electricity cooperatives that have Medical Priority Registration. We elevated the following California programs to see access at-risk individuals during a power outage. The programs include the Medical Baseline Program, Backup Power Transfer Meter Program, Portable Battery Program, Self-Identified Vulnerable Program, and the Disability Disaster Access & Resource Program. Step 2: Select counties fully covered by the Medical Baseline Program, or a similar one. We chose counties that were located in with utilities providing a Medical Baseline Program. Step 3: Determine electricity-dependent beneficiaries. Next, we determined the number of electricity-dependent beneficiaries. To do this we used the U.S. Health and Human Services emPower Program. The emPower Program gathers information on the number of electricity dependent beneficiaries down to the census tract level. Using the HHS emPower data we were able to determine the number of beneficiaries in counties that have a Medical Baseline Program or similar. Step 4: Estimating the investment total for electricity-dependent beneficiaries. We costed the price to install rooftop solar and/or battery backup (Tesla Powerwall) in each of these residences with an at risk beneficiary. We determined the cost with and without IRA tax credits. Step 5: Map the cost by county and determine state investment.

Code for Methodology: The data for beneficiaries within California Counties was provided by the HHS emPOWER map [1]. This provided the data for how many beneficiaries were present, but also how many were at-risk from outages. Using Pandas, the data was converted from a .csv into a dataframe. Using a GeoJson from State of California Open Data [2], a map of California could be plotted. From there, every feature within the GeoJson was mapped to the county in the dataframe. Because both lists were in alphabetical order, the data was able to match up correctly. Using the .plot function, diagrams were made based on the beneficiaries as well as the at risk beneficiaries. Using a Purple Orange color map highlighted the disparity between counties (particularly between Southern California and more Northern regions). Calculations for solar and battery costs were done across the country using data from Angi and EnergySage [3,4]. Per county numbers could not be found reliably for the powerwalls, but the solar panel data is from California Distributed Generation Statistics [5].

Results: The cost per solar can be averaged to around $20,363 without a tax credit and $14,254 with. For 250,572 at-risk beneficiaries, the costs come out to $5,102,397,636 without a credit and $3,571,653,288 with one of 30%. The cost per battery can be averaged to around $11,500 without a tax credit and $8,050 with. For 250,572 at-risk beneficiaries, the costs come out to $2,881,578,000 without a credit and $2017104600 with one of 30%.

Figures and Table: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1nAV-_JZXaw2mmo95yU96uRg_JeiaPX8yu9JQC7t-DjE/edit?tab=t.0

Discussion: This study determined the investment cost in the most critical homes in California. The methods from this study can be replicated in other states, and the results can be included in applications for New Era funding, along with other IRA programs such as Solar for All and SGIP in California. Applications for some programs need to be expediated due to regulatory rollback.

Conclusion: Homes with electricity-dependent Medicare beneficiaries are vulnerable to power outages. Using funds from the New ERA Program to create at-home solar generation and backup storage can eliminate power outages in these groups and improve health and quality of life.

References

https://empowerprogram.hhs.gov/empowermap
https://lab.data.ca.gov/dataset/california-counties1
https://www.angi.com/articles/tesla-powerwall-cost.htm
https://www.energysage.com/local-data/solar/ca/
https://www.californiadgstats.ca.gov/charts/nem/

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• Jayson Ufuoma Toweh

  • Stanford University, Doerr School of Sustainability
    Stanford, CA
    USA

• Aadrit Talukdar

  • BASIS Independent Silicon Valley
    San Jose, CA
    USA