New Homes Incentive Program

The following Terms and Conditions establish the program eligibility requirements for an application to the New Homes Incentive Program (Program). The Program is designed to encourage the construction of homes with greater energy efficiency and includes rebates for solar PV installations.

Program Applications are subject to approval under the HAT Smart Initiative. A completed Application is neither a guarantee of eligibility for a rebate under the Program, nor payment of the rebate itself, and is subject to the following Terms and Conditions:

1. The Program will be in effect from January 1 to December 31, 2025, or until a time in which Program funds are fully disbursed.
   • Applicants are eligible for 1 (one) Program rebate per New Home.
2. The Program works on a ‘first come, first served’ basis; there will be no reservation of funds, and rebates will be allocated and secured based on the receipt of a complete Application in the order it is submitted into The City’s HAT Smart system.
   • A complete Application is one that is considered legible and includes the EnerGuide Label, Home Owner Report, and Blower Door report.
     • On-site renewables require additional supporting documentation including:
       • Confirmation of a System Size Review and approved system size by the City of Medicine Hat
       • Solar PV Design showing the Module DC Nameplate, Inverter AC Nameplate, and expected annual generation output.
       • Photos of panels and inverters.
       • Invoice with a detailed description of the Project, installed system size (kW DC and kW AC) and total Project cost.
       • Proof of payment (receipt).
   • If an Application is considered incomplete, it will be declined by HAT Smart. A new Application will be required, and the submission order will be reset.
3. The Applicant must be in good standing with the City of Medicine Hat. The City of Medicine Hat reserves the right to define what good standing entails, and this includes, but is not limited to:
   • The Applicant must have never been in collections for a property in the City of Medicine Hat.
   • If the Applicant has any current or previous enforcement, compliance, licensing, legal, or other issues with the City of Medicine Hat they may be deemed ineligible.
4. To be considered an Eligible Project and qualify for a rebate under the Program, the:
   • EnerGuide Label, Home Owner Report, and Blower Door Report must be obtained under the EnerGuide Rating System v.15 rating system and must be completed by a Natural Resources Canada registered energy advisor, with a current City of Medicine Hat Business License; a list of service providers can be found on Natural Resource Canada’s website; and
   • EnerGuide Evaluation must be completed between January 1, 2025, and December 31, 2025, as presented on the corresponding EnerGuide Label, Home Owner Report, and Blower Door Report.
5. To be eligible for a rebate under the Program:
   • Eligible Projects must be completed by the property owner as confirmed by application submission requirements and verified by the City of Medicine Hat.
   • Applicants must either receive a City of Medicine Hat residential Electric and/or Natural Gas utility statement for the Project address in their name or, for rental properties, be named as the property owner on the utility account.
   • The home must meet the definition of a New Home under the Hat Smart program.
6. Rebates are paid to a maximum of $10,000, based on the reduction in gigajoules as determined during the EnerGuide Evaluation and described on the EnerGuide Label.
   • The Applicant should allow four (4) weeks to process the application and payment. If approved, the rebate will be paid by cheque or direct deposit. All rebate cheques issued must be cashed within 180 days from the cheques’ issuance date and will not be re-issued after this time.
7. The Applicant is solely responsible for:
   • researching and ensuring they qualify under applicable eligibility criteria as described in these Terms and Conditions and outlined on the HAT Smart website;
   • meeting all Program requirements and complying with any laws, regulations, or by-laws regarding permits, codes, restrictions, and/or inspections in relation to products or equipment installed;
   • any direct or indirect taxes, duties, levies, fees, or like charges incurred as a result of participation in the Program;
   • retaining a copy of the Application form and all required documentation; these will not be returned to the Applicant by HAT Smart; and
   • ensuring contractors are appropriately certified and qualified to conduct the work.
8. The Applicant acknowledges and agrees that HAT Smart:
   • is not responsible for, and accepts no liability nor makes any representations with respect to estimated or possible energy savings;
   • is not responsible for, nor liable for, the selection, purchase, installation, and ownership/ maintenance of the products included in any submitted rebate application; and
   • makes no representation or warranty, whether expressed, implied, direct or indirect, with respect to the products, services or other measures that the Applicant has purchased.
9. The Applicant further agrees:
   • the Eligible Project has been completed in the specified dwelling by a Natural Resources Canada registered energy advisor who has a current City of Medicine Hat Business License, and that purchases and installations are of new condition and for non-commercial use only;
   • that HAT Smart is not affiliated in any way with the manufacturer, distributor, dealer, and/or installer of the product(s);
   • that combined incentives from government programs shall not exceed 100% of Eligible Project costs;
   • to disclose rebate amounts received, or to be received, from complementary municipal, provincial, and/or federal government programs; and
   • any other rebate(s), discount(s) and/or incentive(s) offered and/or provided by any government agency, institution, manufacturer, distributor, dealer and/or installer are separate and distinct from the Program, and HAT Smart shall not be responsible for the administration or payment of the same nor be responsible for the erroneous submission of other rebate(s), discount(s) and/or incentive(s) to HAT Smart.
10. In submitting this application, the Applicant consents:
    • to the disclosure of personal information, as well as the rebate amount awarded to the Applicant, to HAT Smart, its contractors, employees, partners and others who have a need to know; and
    • to the collection, use, disclosure and retention of such information for five years, following which such information will be destroyed or made anonymous.
11. HAT Smart reserves the right to change or terminate the Program at any time without notice or explanation. HAT Smart will use reasonable efforts to process a completed eligible application received prior to changes or Program termination according to Program requirements in effect on the date the application was received.

To qualify for a rebate:

• Applicants must receive a City of Medicine Hat residential Electric and/or Natural Gas utility statement for the Project address in their name; and
• The EnerGuide Label and Homeowner Report must be obtained under the ERS v.15 rating system and must be completed by a Natural Resources Canada registered energy advisor with a City of Medicine Hat business license. A list of service providers can be found on Natural Resource Canada's website.
• The EnerGuide Label and Homeowner Report must be completed between January 1, 2025 and December 31, 2025 as presented on the EnerGuide Label and Howeowner Report.

Failure to comply with incentive requirements and/or terms and conditions will cause your application to be declined and a new application will be required, which will be entered in the queue for review based on the date it is received by HAT Smart.

If you plan to install a Solar PV system:

• A System Size Review is required. Visit the City’s Microgeneration webpage for more information.
• Solar PV systems must be designed and installed by a qualified installer and system components and must be CSA or ULC approved for installation in Canada. Visit one of the websites below for installers/contractors serving Medicine Hat and area.
  • Medicine Hat Chamber of Commerce Business Directory
  • Solar Energy Society of Alberta
• All equipment must be purchased in Canada between January 1 and December 31, 2025 as evidenced by the date on invoices and/or receipts. Online purchases are only eligible if they are ordered from an online distributor in Canada.

Important

Any deviation, whether increase or decrease, from the approved system size (kW DC or kW AC) must be approved by the City and the Utilities Distribution Systems Electric Engineering Department (Electric Engineering).

If the installed system size is larger than the approved system size, Electric Engineering may refuse to install the bi-directional meter until the system size is corrected and the rebate will be denied at HAT Smart's discretion.

An energy advisor is an individual that has been licensed and tested by Natural Resources Canada to perform all the required modeling, testing, and associated paperwork required to obtain an EnerGuide rating.

1. The builder contacts an energy advisor to enroll and label the house in the program.
2. The energy advisor completes an analysis of the new house plans, noting components that will affect the energy efficiency of the house (i.e. mechanical equipment, windows, building envelope, insulation levels, etc.), referred to as ‘Initial Modelling’.
3. The energy advisor inputs this information into NRCan's energy simulation software to determine the estimated annual energy usage and EnerGuide rating for the house as per the plans.
4. The energy advisor also provides variations of the simulation that include energy efficient upgrades which improve the energy performance of the home. The energy advisor ensures that good Building Science principles are maintained.
5. The ‘as per plans’ rating and the optional energy efficient upgrades are provided to the builder for costing analysis.
6. The builder meets with the homeowner to agree on the house specs and energy efficient components that their house will have, and associated costs.
7. When construction is complete, the builder calls the energy advisor to verify the energy efficient upgrades in the house and perform a blower door test.
8. After data has been collected, the homeowner is provided with the evaluation report and official label that shows the EnerGuide rating of the home. This label is then be affixed to the electrical panel.

• Completed EnerGuide Evaluation package including the official EnerGuide Label, Homeowner Report, and Blower Door Report

If a Solar PV system was installed, the following documents are required:

• Confirmation of a System Size Review and approved system size by the City of Medicine Hat
• Solar PV Design, showing the Module DC Nameplate, Inverter AC Nameplate, and expected annual generation output.
• Photo(s) of panels and inverters
• Invoice with a detailed description of the project, installed system size (kW DC and kW AC) and total project cost.
• Proof of payment (receipt)

Confirmation of rebate amounts received, or to be received, from complementary municipal, provincial, and/or federal government programs.

To receive payment by direct deposit, complete the Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) Registration Form. Otherwise, your rebate will be paid by Cheque and mailed to the address provided on your application form.