net metering – RI Future

On June 18, the General Assembly passed a renewable energy legislative package that continues to move Rhode Island towards a clean energy economy of the future.

One section of this package, reflecting legislative language I introduced this session, expands Rhode Island’s net metering law to provide residential accounts and low-income and affordable housing residents the capacity to remotely net meter. By creating new opportunities for community renewable energy projects that are open to all Rhode Islanders (not just folks who own a roof that’s perfect for solar), our legislation will spur local renewable production, boost our state’s economic development, and bring the benefits of renewable energy to thousands more Rhode Island families.

This program expansion comes not a moment too soon. Most of us understand that there is a climate catastrophe hurtling towards us that requires urgent action. We also know that the move to renewable energy offers incredible economic potential – in fact, Rhode Island’s 2016 Clean Energy Industry Report found that clean energy employment grew a stunning 40% last year, to 14,000 jobs. So as a state, we have both a moral obligation and an economic imperative to go full steam ahead with a transition to clean energy.

To achieve this, we need to take renewable energy to scale and make sure its benefits are accessible to all Rhode Islanders. Community remote net metering is a critical piece of that puzzle; here’s how it works.

Net metering is a policy that allows Rhode Islanders who install renewable energy systems such as solar panels to connect to the electric grid and receive credit on their bill for the energy they generate. It makes sense (folks should be credited for the energy they’re producing) and creates a major economic incentive to develop these projects.

The problem is that right now, net metering can only apply to installations that are physically on a customer’s property. Yet only 25% of rooftops in Rhode Island are currently optimal for solar systems. Many homes are affected by shading from nearby trees or angling issues. And lots of Rhode Islanders are renters, or live in affordable housing, meaning they’re not able to install projects right on their residency. The way the current program is set up, we’re excluding three quarters of Rhode Islanders from participating in this market right off the bat!

By expanding net metering to include off-site generation and community solar projects, we can ensure that every family has an opportunity to access the benefits of cheap and stable renewable energy, whether or not their direct premises are suitable for a solar or wind system.

That means a lot more demand for these projects, which means more businesses stepping up to fill that demand, which means more jobs, more clean energy, and lower costs for thousands of Rhode Islanders.

It also means more equity. Off-site net metered systems can be designed to serve multiple customers, providing a way for renters and low-income families to join together on community renewable projects that they could never site or afford on their own. As we transition to a clean energy economy, we can’t leave anyone behind, so it is critical that we open net metering to all Rhode Islanders – not just those who can afford to build a full system individually.

We have a responsibility to the next generation of Rhode Islanders to act on climate change by bringing renewable energy to scale. But we shouldn’t fear this clean energy transition. Rather, this should be a revolution to celebrate, for it entails more jobs for working families, enhanced energy security for our state, and – ultimately – reduced energy costs for all Rhode Islanders.

By expanding access to the democratic, open-source energy generation that comes from community remote net metering, we are moving our state forward toward a more prosperous, equitable, and environmentally friendly economy for everyone. And that’s something we can all get behind.

Screen Shot 2016-03-09 at 1_Fotor — Frank McMahon, National Grid

State Rep Aaron Regunberg’s bill to allow net metering and virtual net metering in Rhode Island, (House Bill No.7585) heard in House Corporations Tuesday evening, was met with an outpouring of support from business owners and conservationists. The only people who spoke against the idea were representatives for National Grid, the RI Public Utilities Commission (PUC), and the RI Office for Energy Resources (OER).

Net metering allows people to generate their own electricity- think solar panels, wind turbines, or even exercise bikes- in order to reduce their electric bills or even to sell their surplus electricity to their neighbors. Virtual Net Metering allows people to pool resources and develop solar and wind farms off their property, yet still reap the benefits of reducing or reversing the costs of electricity.

This is a big win for consumers in states like Massachusetts, where the solar rooftop industry is flourishing. During testimony, five representatives from solar companies testified in favor of the bill. They testified that the regulatory climate in Massachusetts has allowed their businesses to boom there. In Rhode Island, it is much more difficult to make the numbers work, if they can at all, because of the laws and regulations here that protect the interests of a multi-billion dollar, out of state corporations like National Grid.

Christopher Kearns, representing the RI Office of Energy Resources and the Governor’s office, said that net metering is “touched upon” in Governor Gina Raimondo’s budget and that they would prefer all net metering policy decisions be determined there.

I’ve spoken about the anti-democratic nature of inserting policy into the budget in the past. When the General Assembly prevented cities and towns from determining their own minimum wages, it was done as a budget item. When Gina Raimondo messed with abortion coverage in HealthSourceRI, it was done as a budget item. Both these decisions were disasters for poor and working class Rhode Islanders.

I maintain that the reason to insert policy into the budget rather than through an open legislative process is to prevent public input and public discussion on vital issues and to concentrate power into the hands of a small group of legislators and the Governor’s office. As of this writing Kearns has not responded to a request for comment on this.

Cynthia Wilson-Frias, Deputy Chief Counsel for the Rhode Island Public Utilities Commission, also spoke against the proposal. The PUC effectively exists to rubber stamp National Grid’s periodic rate increases. The PUC is also working with the Governor’s office and the OER on a version of net metering. She said that the bill seems over broad and might put the state at risk of violating federal laws. Of course, if Massachusetts can do this, why can’t Rhode Island?

That leads me to the last objector, Frank McMahon of National Grid. Speaking with the casual disdain of someone who knows that the power is on his side, McMahon told the room that he doesn’t want to bore us with the “technical reasons” of National Grid’s objections. McMahon agreed with the the PUC and the OER that net metering is a subject best kept within the confines of the Governor’s budget article, where, it can be presumed, his lobbying efforts will have the greatest impact.

You can watch Regunberg’s presentation of his bill and the testimony here:

You can also watch all the testimony concerning Rep Regunberg’s other bill, House Bill No.7514 in the video below. This bill, also opposed by the PUC and National Grid, would require “the division of public utilities and carriers and the public utilities commission to include climate, environmental, employment, health and consumer concerns in all their proceedings and decisions.”

Watch as Wilson-Frias of the PUC objects to the bill on the grounds that the PUC’s “primary role is to approve rates sufficient to provide a utility to engage in providing a safe, reliable service…”

In other words, climate, environmental, employment, health and consumer concerns are secondary to a utility’s ability to make a profit.

As long as that is true, effective action against climate change and towards energy independence will be impossible.

Tag: net metering

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