Advocates Celebrate Major Policy Win in the Country’s Largest PV Market
Sacramento, Calif. – February 18, 2010 – Today the California State Assembly passed AB 510, a bill to raise the cap on a key solar policy called “net metering.” Net metering is a simple billing arrangement that allows solar customers to get fair retail credit for the excess electricity their systems generate during daytime hours. Having passed the Senate last week, the bill now only needs the Governor’s signature to become law.
Existing law requires California’s major electric utilities to make net metering available to customers on a first-come-first-served basis until the total program capacity exceeds 2.5 percent of the utility’s peak demand. AB 510 doubles the net metering program capacity to 5 percent, ensuring that Californians continue to have fair access to this critical solar program for the near term.
Bill author Assemblymember Nancy Skinner (D-Berkeley) said, “California leads the nation in solar energy, accounting for more than 65 percent of the all the solar installed in the U.S. Net metering has been absolutely fundamental to that success. The passage of this bill means continued green job growth, further energy bill savings, progress in the fight against climate change, and a brighter future for California.”
Sara Birmingham, western policy director for the Solar Alliance, a state-level trade association continued, “AB 510 will ensure that participants in the state’s highly successful California Solar Initiative will continue to have access to net metering benefits through the program’s completion. Its passage sends a clear signal to the growing solar industry that California intends to be open for business tomorrow and for years to come. I applaud Assemblywoman Skinner for her leadership in ensuring California’s continued success in the new energy economy.”
Adam Browning, executive director of the Vote Solar Initiative, a national grassroots advocacy organization added, “Net metering makes solar more affordable for those who want to make the investment in clean energy. And because solar produces reliable power during peak hours when we all need it most, that same investment in solar helps lower costs for all ratepayers. Today, Assemblymember Skinner and the legislature took a bold step to make solar a significant part of our energy future.”
Through net metering, solar customers’ electricity meters to spin forward when they are using power from the utility grid, and reverse, spinning backward when customers are producing more energy than they are using. The customer is billed only for the net energy used. Today more than 50,000 California homes, schools and businesses take advantage of the state’s net metering program to lower their utility bills.
Net metering has no direct impact on the state’s general fund. In fact, it allows California schools and public agencies to reduce operating costs by investing in solar energy. California public agencies have already installed at least 51 MW of solar, saving taxpayers more than $270 million in avoided utility payments. With federal stimulus funds committed to support the state’s switch to solar, this legislation is a critical component of a fiscally and environmentally responsible energy future in California.
Expanding the net metering cap is definitely moving us in the right direction. However, we must make sure that low-income ratepayers — those who are too poor to affordably make use of even discounted CSI rebates, but make too much money to qualify for the free (completely subsidized) solar installations — are not subsidizing their wealthier counterparts in going solar. Previous net metering legislation passed in California has language providing low-income ratepayer protections, but it is unclear how exactly that is done. Can anyone comment on that?
Thank you! And sincere congratulations to those who succeeded in passing this critical bill!
I think this passage of AB510 is great, for we need all the incentives we can get to encourage people to take the steps toward clean energy and reduced energy use. I would like to note as well, that making homes and buildings as energy efficient as possible, would reduce the amount of solar panels required to be purchased in the first place (and reduced Carbon Footprint). If solar panels are already in place, now with this increase in net metering, reducing energy use will also mean more $$ in the pocket!
To anyone who has influence, please keep pushing for increased incentives for energy reduction retrofits as well!! We need more significant incentives than currently proposed, to do energy retrofits to reduce use. These stimulus packages/incentives should be equivalent to the solar incentives (or more!) so we can make our state/country reduce energy use, make our homes more energy efficient, and reduce our CO2 impact. Thanks!
I heartily support additional solar installations to produce much needed domestic energy, so we can reduce our reliance on politically erratic international energy suppliers.
I teach in a public school, whose long, south-facing roofs could help power our school’s energy needs as well as potentially create excess energy that would save California taxpayers money.
I am interested in grants, incentives, and programs that will help the public invest smartly so we can contain the energy cost associated with government buildings, schools, hospitals, etc.
Imagine, instead of robbing the coffers of my nationally-respected, award-winning school district and decimating the programs we have created to empower the next generation…
Scramento could actually invest in a prudent, cost-effective program.
why is there any cap?
I think net metering should be available to all who wish to install and use renewable energy.
This is great news! Having said this, the next most important issue for solar integrators is the permitting process. It’s currently a joke. The City and Utility permitting process is a “deal killer” and it’s giving the Industry a bad name.
As I canvass business owners and CEO’s here in Southern California, they are raising their eyebrows about Global Warming, Cap & Trade and Carbon Credits, AND relating stories about friends who have installed Solar and stating, “What a nightmare when it came to the permitting process and blown promised dates.”
It takes months to develop a prospect and then 1 phone call from a frustrated
friend of the prospect and the lead vaporizes.
You folks have done a GREAT JOB, and I encourage you to keep up the pressures and keep hammering on the red tape issues.
Much appreciation
Roger Herren
SVP SBR Solar
Can you explain exactly what “5% of PGE’s peak demand” means? Is it kwh’s? How many more customers, besides the 50,000 that have already taken advantage of net metering, will be able to take advantage of net metering?