Community Benefit Agreements

Wind Energy Community Benefits Database

This searchable database reflects community benefit agreements (CBAs), community benefit funds, donations, and other forms of benefits from land-based and offshore wind energy developments in the U.S. compiled by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) from 2022 to 2024.

If you would like to submit a CBA that is not represented in this database, please email windcommunitybenefits@nrel.gov .

For more information about how community benefits are developed and the role they play in wind energy development, please visit the Wind Energy Community Benefits Guide. Learn more about the community impacts of wind farms.

What Forms of Community Benefits Does This Database Include?

Community benefits for wind energy projects can be structured in many ways, but the following categories are the most common and are the focus of this database:
Developers and representatives of a government or community may sign an agreement stating the benefits that will be provided from a project and detailing the mechanisms and timelines for delivering benefits. Terminology may vary, depending on factors like the type of infrastructure or who the signatories are. Common names or types include community benefit agreement, host community agreement, good neighbor agreement, and tribal benefit agreement.
Developers may provide payments, donations, or other financial benefits to a local or Tribal government outside of the bounds of a formal agreement; these are often one-time payments.
Developers may establish funds that distribute funding to different causes or recipients in the community over time, often through the form of grants. Terminology and structure may vary, with common names or types including community benefit fund, community fund, or scholarship fund.
Developers may directly donate or contribute to local organizations, programs, or causes in the community (e.g., schools, fire departments, community service organizations).
291 results Download
Project Name
State
County
Form of Benefit
Additional Form
Infrastructure Type
Number of Turbines
Generating Capacity (MW)
Year Built
New England Wind 1 Massachusetts Barnstable Formal agreement Offshore wind energy cable landing N/A N/A Not yet built
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Avangrid

  • Through a host community agreement with the town of Barnstable, signed in 2022 and updated in 2024, Avangrid will provide more than $24 million to the town of Barnstable. This includes a $16 million payment within sixty days of the project's financial close, $5.5 million for post-construction streetscaping, $2.4 million for sewer construction, and $500,000 for the Barnstable High School Environmental Science and Technology Lab. The agreement also includes reimbursement for any business disruptions during cable construction. The original agreement signed in 2022 included only the $16 million payment, which was to be paid over 20 years rather than at one time; the additional provisions and new payment schedule were added in 2024 through a side agreement with the town.

Verified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024

Sunrise New York Brookhaven Formal agreement Offshore wind energy cable landing N/A N/A Under construction in 2024
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Ørsted / Eversource

  • In 2023, the town of Brookhaven, NY signed a host community agreement with Sunrise Wind that will provide a $168.9 million benefit package to the town, county, and other jurisdictions. The package includes $135.95 million in impact fees, which will be paid in 25 installments of $5 million to $6 million annually, starting once the Sunrise project begins producing power; additionally, the package includes a $3 million parks payment aimed to improve public parks and open space and a $2 million hamlet payment that will go toward ambulance and public health services. Within the agreement is also a $28 million PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) payment. The town of Brookhaven will receive $130 million from the agreement, with Suffolk County and local school districts sharing the remaining amount.

  • Prior to signing the agreement, Brookhaven's Industrial Development Agency signed a different agreement providing Sunrise Wind with $90 million in tax breaks for construction of the cable landing and an operations center.

Verified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024

Vineyard Wind 1 Massachusetts Barnstable Formal agreement Offshore wind energy cable landing N/A N/A 2023
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Vineyard Wind

  • Through a host community agreement with Vineyard Wind, signed in 2018, the town of Barnstable will receive at least $16 million in host community payments. This includes annual payments, plus an additional $60,000 annually (adjusted for inflation) if the project's lifetime extends beyond that period; the agreement also accounts for several contingencies based on cable route, as a cable route had not been selected at the time that it was signed. This agreement is in addition to property tax revenues.

Verified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024

Salem Offshore Wind Terminal Massachusetts Salem Formal agreement Fund Offshore wind energy port N/A N/A 2024-
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Crowley Wind Services / Massachusetts Clean Energy Center / City of Salem

  • In 2024, the city of Salem and Crowley Wind Services signed a community benefit agreement worth nearly $9 million. The agremeent has commitments in the areas of workforce and economic development, sustainability, housing and infrastructure, impacts to city services, Salem Public Schools and education, and other CBA commitments. This includes over $400,000 for scholarships, $187,500 for bilingual outreach to support local access to the offshore wind industry, $3.5 million for Salem Public Schools programs, funding for Indigenous history and cultural education, establishment of a $500,000 Climate Adaptation Fund, a commitment to port electrification by 2040, a commitment to local and diverse hiring, rental assistance for port workers, funding for Salem municipal projects and services, funding for monitoring and compliance of the CBA, reimbursement for legal and consultant expenses incurred by the city, and many other provisions.

Verified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024

South Fork New York East Hampton Formal agreement Fund Offshore wind energy cable landing N/A N/A 2023
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Ørsted / Eversource

  • Through a host community agreement with Ørsted and Eversource, the town of East Hampton, NY and trustee boards will receive approximately $29 million in addition to property taxes. The agreement includes a $500,000 payment after the agreement was signed, a $500,000 payment after the project began operating, and $700,000 annually (with annual increases) for 25 years. The agreement also establishes a $5.5 million fund held by the town, called the Wainscott Fund, which will be paid into when operations begin and one year into operations. The developers are required to employ a liaison to facilitate communications between the company and the commercial fishing community for the life of the project.

Verified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024

State Pier Connecticut New London Formal agreement Offshore wind energy port N/A N/A 2023
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Ørsted / Eversource / Connecticut Port Authority

  • Through a host community agreement with North East Offshore, the city of New London will receive $7.5 million over 10 years, with potential increases or decreases in this amount depending on how the port is used. The agreement includes a $750,000 annual payment for 10 years, with potential increases of $250,000 to $1 million in later years depending on use of State Pier. Payments can also increase up to $1.5 million annually based on state wind energy procurements. However, payments can also decrease to $250,000 annually if State Pier is subleased. State Pier is a state-owned tax exempt property in the city of New London.

Verified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024

South Brooklyn Marine Terminal New York Brooklyn Fund Non-financial Offshore wind energy port N/A N/A 2024-
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Equinor / New York City Economic Development Corporation

  • In 2022, NYC Economic Development Corporation (NYC EDC) and Equinor committed to establishing a $5 million ecosystem fund to support New York City residents in entering the offshore wind industry. The clean energy community grant fund is designed to support sustainable growth, workforce development, empowerment of underserved communities, and climate justice in the city’s emerging offshore wind ecosystem.

  • In 2023, NYC EDC established the Waterfront Pathways program, which provides education and direct support to help businesses navigate the contract bidding process. The program aims to increase opportunities for minority-, women-, and disadvantaged-owned business enterprises in the offshore wind and waterfront industries

  • Equinor has committed to making the port a low-emissions facility.

  • As suggested by the community, Equinor will establish an offshore wind energy learning center near the terminal.

Verified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024

SouthCoast Rhode Island Portsmouth Formal agreement Fund Offshore wind energy cable landing N/A N/A Not yet built
Developed, Owned, or Operated by SouthCoast Wind Energy

  • In 2024, the town of Portsmouth, RI and SouthCoast Wind Energy signed a host community agremeent that will provide $23.2 million to the town over the SouthCoast project lifetime. This includes a $500,000 payment after the agreement was signed, two $250,000 payments at the start of each project phase's construction, annual payments of $250,000 for 20 years (increased annually), and annual payments of $125,000 in years 21-33 of the project if it is still operating. A fixed portion ($125,000) of the annual payment amount is considered a PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) payment. Additionally, the agreement includes a $3.25 million payment at the start of construction that will go into a town climate resilience fund or other public benefit project.

Verified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024

New England Aqua Ventus Maine Monhegan Island Formal agreement Non-financial Offshore wind energy project 1 11 Not yet built
Developed, Owned, or Operated by University of Maine / Maine Aqua Ventus

  • Through a community benefit agreement with the island community of Monhegan, ME, Maine Aqua Ventus will provide at at least $2.43 million in upfront funding and technical assistance for Monhegan to plan, design, and construct its own energy system. This would allow Monhegan Island to be independent of a mainland cable connection, as well as providing additional support for operations and maintenance. The agreement allocates $100,000 for a community broadband project, which would expand Internet access on the island, and $40,000 per year in a separate municipal fund. The University of Maine will help contribute to supporting other community priorities, such as energy efficiency, water systems, housing, transportation, and job training. Monhegan residents voted in favor of this benefit package.

  • Maine Aqua Ventus and the University of Maine covered the expense of hiring technical experts and legal counsel to assist the community with the benefit agreement.

Verified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024

CADEMO California Federal waters Formal agreement Offshore wind energy project 4 60 Not yet built
Developed, Owned, or Operated by Floventis Energy

  • In 2023, CADEMO and the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians signed a community benefit agreement for the proposed CADEMO floating offshore wind energy project being developed by Floventis Energy. The agreement includes Tribal consultation in state and federal environmental reviews, support for a Traditional Cultural Landscape Study to be conducted by the Tribe, and the Tribe gaining naming rights for the project. The agreement also creates a new nonprofit research institute that will be established and operated by the Tribe; the institute will develop Tribal oceanographic expertise and best practice for environmental comanagement of ocean and coastal resources and the proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary. Additionally, CADEMO and the Tribe will collaborate with the Tri-Counties Building and Construction Trades Council and California community colleges to develop education and training programs for topics like Tribal collaborative management of offshore resources, environmental reviews, and offshore wind technician training.

Verified by WINDExchange on Aug. 1, 2024

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What Forms of Community Benefits Are Not Included in This Database?

CBAs and related forms of community benefits may be provided alongside other agreements or economic impacts that serve different purposes, such as:

  • Land lease payments to landowners that host wind turbines.
  • Project labor agreements for construction of wind energy projects.
  • Taxes or tax agreements like payment in lieu of taxes (PILOTs).
  • Direct compensation to impacted stakeholders, such as commercial fishermen.

This database does not include these other types of wind energy benefits, as they differ from CBAs and related benefit mechanisms in several key ways; namely, the community benefits included in this database are unrelated to taxation, are intended to provide benefits to the community as a whole rather than a specific group of people, like landowners, and are separate from impact mitigation measures required by permitting agencies.