September 29, 2013

New Laws Will Make It Easier To Buy And Sell Solar Power In California

Two new pieces of new legislation in California will make it easier for people to both buy and sell renewable energy.

One bill set to be signed by Gov. Jerry Brown, SB 43, will allow Californians who are unable to install their own renewable energy systems (such as solar panels), to obtain renewable energy from their power utility. This bill is set to create the largest shared renewables program, the “Green Tariff Shared Renewables Program,” in the United States.


The other new bill, AB 327, will allow people to easily sell their own excess renewable energy, such as rooftop solar power, back to the power grid. As Grist explains, The bill caps the monthly fee for people participating in a net-metering program at $10, and raises the amount of renewable energy state regulators can force utilities to buy from customers.

The first bill will allow customers of investor-owned utilities to buy up to 100% of their power from a renewable energy facility. This could benefit bother renters and business owners who rent offices. It could also benefit homeowners who cannot afford to install rooftop solar. The second bill is a boon for people with rooftop solar panels installed, as excess power generated by their solar panels will serve to save them money. It’s certainly more of an incentive to install solar panels, which are getting cheaper by the year.





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