What California industry creates jobs, boosts the economy, helps children and parents save money on electricity and gives the state a real chance at achieving its clean energy goals?
The residential solar industry.
The new California Public Utilities Commission proposed changes to California’s net metering rules regarding forcing solar homeowners to “pay their fair share” when it comes to getting a fair reimbursement for the free energy they send the power companies - is an outrage. Why?
Because California’s three major utilities - Pacific Gas & Electric, San Diego Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison - all investor-owned - are paranoid about solar. They understand that now, people are not as dependent on fossil fuel-generated electricity.
Those companies are beholden to their investors. If solar continues to proliferate, less and less money will be collected for those investors. The CPUC may change the rules in their favor and literally tread on the rights of free Americans to generate their own electricity.
The proposal? A $40-50 solar tax to be paid monthly by a solar household and reduce the credit given to solar homeowners for the excess solar energy provided to them.
One California solar company is surprised the state would drive a spike into the heart of a thriving industry providing multiple financial and environmental benefits to citizens, governments, states and municipalities. Green Home Systems grew 250% in 24 months and installed more than 1,500 systems in the state.
Green Home Systems Managing Director Robbie Hebert thinks the proposed changes could be devastating. “If the CPUC votes to enact these proposed solar changes in a year, it will be less about “paying your fair share” and more about “We care more about profits than people or the environment,” said Mr Hebert.
I had a chance to learn more in this interview.
Why are traditional power companies worried about solar energy?
As residential rooftop solar becomes more popular with homeowners and grows in number, less money will flow to the power companies; independent energy producers represent a threat to the profitability of the power companies and so they are doing everything they can to make it harder and more expensive to go solar.
If every home in a state, region, county or city goes solar and produces and stores their own electricity for their own use, power companies will go out of business. Some incentives, like the Federal Tax Credit for solar, and other incentives from some states, utilities etc, are attractive and help people make the switch to solar - but some other states and utilities are saying that solar homeowners have to pay their "fair share" - see, when a solar home generates power, it has to used at the time of generation. If it is not used, it gets sent back to the power company. They power company gets free solar energy from the solar homeowner! Then they turn around and sell it at the going retail rate and give the solar homeowner a credit against the grid-power they consume on top of the solar energy they create. (that's called net metering).
But the utilities are arguing that when the excess power is sent through the lines and poles, solar homeowners are essentially using that equipment for free. The utilities have created an argument that solar homeowners should pay for the right to send their excess power for free to the utilities. and it should not be free for the solar homeowners to send that energy for free; it's kind a crazy argument, because the lines and poles are already paid for and the maintenance on that equipment is built into the rates they credit back to the solar homeowner.
There is now a proposal made by the California Public Utilities Commission to drastically reduce the credited amount for solar homeowners AND stick them with a $$50-$60 dollar "solar surcharge" -
Why does solar make sense for many consumers?
When you buy a solar panel system for your home, you are essentially switching out the money you pay every month for power for a fixed monthly payment for the solar. Then, when you have finished making the payments, you own the system and the power you use is is free - thanks to the regular sun.
So instead of paying ever-increasing prices for a kilowatt hour of electricity to the utility, you are paying a fixed amount for the solar until you pay it off. Then you don't have to pay for electricity any more and you can save that money for something else.
Example; say you are paying $275 a month for electricity. When your solar system is paid off, you keep that $275 x 12 months = $3,300 x 10 years = $33,000! That's a lot of money.
How does this proposal affect even people that don't use solar energy?
The proposal will not affect non-solar homeowners - however, those non-solar homeowners are exposed to increasing prices for power; for example, Southern California Edison is enacting an “on-peak” period of 4 p.m. to 9 p.m., when energy would cost 60% more during summer weekdays, and an on-peak period of 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., when energy costs would double during summer weekdays.”
In this case, the utility rigged the time of use to force non solar homeowners to pay a lot more for power during summer when use is typically high. Keep in mind SoCal Edison is an investor-owned utility. The investors are worried about solar and so they are looking for ways to boost their balance sheets on the backs of hard working Californians.
What can consumers do if they're concerned about this proposal?
They can sign a petition urging CA Gov. Newsom to strike down this proposal
https://www.savecaliforniasolar.org/sign-petition
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