US: Rooftop solar could lose big in federal regulatory case

(Inside Climate News, 18 Jun 2020) Regulators are considering a proposal one opponent called “pretty close to saying solar is illegal.”

Rooftop solar as we know it is under threat from a case before federal regulators, and a broad array of clean energy advocates and state officials are getting nervous.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission is considering a request from an obscure consumer group that wants to end net metering, which is the compensation mechanism that allows solar owners to sell their excess electricity to the grid. By selling the electricity they don't need, solar owners get credits on their utility bills, producing savings that help to cover the costs of solar systems.

Monday was the deadline to file comments in the case, and those who responded were overwhelmingly opposed to the petition, but clean energy advocates say there is still a real chance that FERC will decide to throw out state laws that allow net metering.

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Inside Climate News, 18 Jun 2020: US: Rooftop solar could lose big in federal regulatory case