By Jeff Cramer | President and CEO | Coalition for Community Solar Access (CCSA)
The numbers are in: 2024 was the biggest year yet for community solar in the United States. According to Wood Mackenzie, we installed 1.7 GW of new community solar capacity — a 35% increase from 2023 — bringing the nation’s total to 8.6 GW. It’s an incredible milestone for our industry and a testament to the strategic groundwork laid years ago by developers, policymakers, and advocates across the country.
What’s driving this success? Simply put: Smart policy, effective advocacy, and the proven value of community solar as a distributed energy resource (DER). Community solar is the only type of solar that delivers clean, affordable power to people who previously had no access — renters, low-to-moderate income (LMI) households, and small businesses. Our growth reflects what happens when market design, political will, and industry expertise align.
Over the last decade, the Coalition for Community Solar Access (CCSA) and our members have made deliberate time and financial investments in market expansion, often focusing on states willing to innovate. We secured legislative wins that opened new programs and set the stage for growth in places like Illinois, New York, Maine, and Minnesota. But opening markets was only half the battle. Equally important was the regulatory work to ensure these programs are sustainable and scalable.
Take Maryland’s shift to consolidated billing or New Mexico’s expanded capacity as examples of how thoughtful regulatory policy keeps momentum going once a market is open. Our industry has proven nimble — willing to engage in the details of interconnection reform, rate design, and LMI carve-outs to create durable programs that truly work.
That combination of market expansion and smart regulation helped deliver 2024’s record-breaking growth. The three leading states — New York, Maine, and Illinois — accounted for 83% of national volume last year, with each setting new annual records. It shows what’s possible when states embrace well-designed community solar policies.
At the same time, the broader energy landscape is changing fast. Demand is surging due to population growth, data centers, AI, and electrification. Grid operators like PJM are warning of capacity shortfalls and price spikes. Community solar and other forms of distributed solar and storage are uniquely positioned to help meet this challenge because it can be deployed faster and closer to load than large-scale projects. They also offer a rare political sweet spot — garnering bipartisan support by delivering lower energy costs, boosting local economies, and enhancing grid resilience.
Of course, challenges remain. Interconnection delays, federal policy uncertainty, and the need to open new markets could slow our momentum if left unchecked. But we’ve been here before. Our industry has thrived by staying proactive, building broad coalitions, and keeping a laser focus on delivering real value to consumers.
That’s exactly what we are doing in 2025. CCSA is working on active campaigns in states like Pennsylvania, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Ohio. We’re fighting for regulatory reforms that reduce costs and unlock market potential. And we’re pushing to pair community solar with storage — taking distributed energy resources to the next level.
With strong foundations in place and more states eager to embrace the benefits of community solar, the future of this industry is bright. Our record-breaking 2024 is proof that community solar isn’t just a niche product anymore. It’s a core part of America’s clean energy strategy — and one of the most practical, scalable tools we have to meet rising demand while keeping energy affordable.
As we head into the 2025 Community Solar Innovation Summit in Denver this summer, we’ll be celebrating this success — and laying the groundwork for what comes next.
Let’s build on this momentum together.
Jeff Cramer is president and CEO of the Coalition for Community Solar Access (CCSA), having served since CCSA’s founding in 2015. CCSA is a national coalition of over 125 businesses and non-profits working to expand customer choice and access to solar for all American households and businesses through community solar. Prior to CCSA, Cramer cofounded and served as a Partner at 38 North Solutions, a Washington, D.C., public affairs firm that focused exclusively on federal clean energy and sustainability policies and advocacy.
Tags: Coalition for Community Solar Access, Community Solar
