What the proposed solar rule change could cost or save you

CHICO, Calif. - Assembly Bill 942 could have significant financial implications for California homeowners with solar systems. In it’s amended form, the bill would break net metering agreements when homes are sold or transferred.

The California State Assembly’s Utilities & Energy Committee recently voted to pass the amended bill. Utility companies, including PG&E, supported the change, citing that current rules unfairly burden non-solar customers who face rate hikes to cover infrastructure upgrades.

Action News Now interviewed Ben Zientara, a Solar Industry & Policy Analyst at SolarReviews, to understand the bill’s impact.

“Well, so the the provision to that if you sell your home could still affect the total, number of owners of NEM one and two systems. That’s 1,800,000 California homes that could be affected, overall. But the investor in utilities have about 10,000,000 residential customers, and if they all benefit what Assemblymember Calderon says they will, that’s about $2,500,000,000 in  savings through 2043. And I estimate with 10,000,000 rate payers spread across all those investor owned utilities, that’s about $25 per customer per year for those ten years of the them that would be cut off,” Zientara said.

“So that’s about $2 per month per customer. So I’m not sure that’s necessarily a great benefit to Californians to, have the state go back on the contract that they signed with these people,” said Zientara.

When asked about the savings for non-solar customers, Zientara confirmed, “From what I can see, if the savings estimates that Senate member Calderon put in the bill or put in the, analysis of the bill come true.”

The California Public Utilities Commission indicated that Net Energy Metering subsidies shift 11% to 20% of fixed grid costs to non-solar customers. The bill will next be reviewed by the Assembly Committee on Appropriations.

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