Winning an award feels great, but when you can win an award with a team or larger group of people, the feeling is amplified. There is a new list of 25 U.S. cities that are buzzing with excitement. They have been awarded a combined $4.9 million by the Department of Energy (DOE) for their commitment to solar energy.

The Solar America Cities Award is a competition where each city up for consideration had to submit a proposal to the DOE on how they would use the award money to integrate solar technology into their existing power grid, streamline citywide regulations, and promote the expansion of mainstream solar technology among businesses and residents.

The 25 awardees were selected through an evaluation process which looked at a number of solar-friendly practices already in place, and new ones included in the proposal. Creation of city-level solar incentives like solar rebates, financial assistance, tax credits, property tax abatements, and/or tax incentives to solar manufacturers located in the city, an increase in public awareness through promotions and citywide education, inclusion of renewable energy curriculum material in public schools, and integration of solar energy into city planning and emergency preparedness plans all weighed in as major factors in selecting the awardees.

Solar America Cities hope to serve as solar-friendly models for other cities interested in evolving their energy infrastructure and environmental sustainability. The desired outcome from these 25 progressive cities is the development of a comprehensive city-government approach to solar implementation involving key stakeholders, utilities, and private partners, a widespread increase in solar power use, large scale construction of solar installations, and a reduction in market barriers through activities such as updating permitting processes and zoning codes.

And although this is an exhaustively long list, this year the awardees are as follows: Ann Arbor, MI, Austin, TX, Berkeley, CA, Boston, MA, Denver, CO, Houston, TX, Knoxville, TN, Madison, WI, Milwaukee, WI, Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN, New Orleans, LA, New York, NY, Orlando, FL, Philadelphia, PA, Pittsburg, PA, Portland, OR, Sacramento, CA, Salt Lake City, UT, San Antonio, TX, San Diego, CA, San Francisco, CA, San Jose, CA, Santa Rosa, CA, Seattle, WA, and Tucson, AZ.