Credit: PetersenDean
A group of 26 California congress members — more than 60% of the state’s Democratic delegation — issued a letter to Alice Reynolds, Char of the California Public Utilities Commission, urging the CPUC to keep solar growing, affordable and contributing to state and national climate goals. The CPUC could unveil a new decision as soon as its March 17, 2022, voting meeting.
Referencing the CPUC’s “proposed decision to significantly reduce the financial benefits of solar in California,” the Congress Members applauded postponing the proposal and asked the CPUC to “use the time to look at options that do not harm existing residential solar adopters while achieving an equitable solution for adopters as well as all customers.”
In the letter, California congressional representatives noted “imposing a tax on solar panels and reducing the rate of solar power exports by as much as 80% will label California as a climate straggler, not a climate leader.” They also expressed concern that the proposed decision runs counter to federal renewable energy policies and “would reportedly cut California’s rooftop solar market in half by 2024.”
The letter from California congress members comes after a recent statement of support for rooftop solar from Senator Feinstein who said the CPUC’s “proposal that may reduce the pace of adoption of rooftop solar and storage is concerning and may impact the state’s conservation goals as we address climate change.”
The CPUC is considering changes to net-metering, the state policy that makes rooftop solar and storage more affordable for consumers of all types by compensating them for the excess energy they produce and share with their neighbors. Currently, 1.3 million consumers use net metering, including thousands of public schools, churches and affordable housing developments, and it is the main driver of California’s world-renowned rooftop solar market. As a result of net metering, working- and middle-class neighborhoods are just under half of the rooftop solar market and the fastest growing segment today.
The 26 congress members from California who signed on to the letter to CPUC Chair Alice Reynolds, dated February 22, include:
- Representative Mike Thompson
- Representative Mike Levin
- Representative Maxine Waters
- Representative Anna Eshoo
- Representative Lucille Roybal-Allard
- Representative Zoe Lofgren
- Representative Brad Sherman
- Representative Barbara Lee
- Representative Jim Costa
- Representative Doris Matsui
- Representative Jerry McNerney
- Representative Jackie Speier
- Representative Karen Bass
- Representative Julia Brownley
- Representative Jared Huffman
- Representative Alan Lowenthal
- Representative Raul Ruiz
- Representative Eric Swalwell
- Representative Mark Takano
- Representative Mark DeSaulnier
- Representative Ted Lieu
- Representative Nanette Barragán
- Representative Ro Khanna
- Representative Jimmy Panetta
- Representative Jimmy Gomez
- Representative Katie Porter
News item from Save California Solar
