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welcome back more and more Californians are being turned off by solar as their pg& bills rise consumers say they're picking up more of the bill and tonight ABC 10 anchor Laura painter is looking at the cost of going green that's right Alex for years California was eager to subsidize solar panels and other similar upgrades typically when it comes to going solar you had to pay more upfront while subsidies and long-term efficiency savings made the investment worth it over time time but now that mentality is Shifting as incentives from private utility companies like pg& go away I said I want to put as many panels as we can on the house so that we can keep our electricity Bild down Cindy and Paul Harmon have lived in their Auburn home for more than three decades raising their kids growing their garden and installing dozens of solar panels in an effort to go green and reduce costs over time when our system gets cooking and the days get longer we don't pay anything for electricity at all many homeowners like the harmans have bet on the long-term Savings of going solar but now the math of going green is changing typically when solar customers generate extra electricity they can store it in a battery or sell it back to the power grid if they sell it their utility company would give them a credit lowering their energy bill but a unanimous vote by the California Public Utilities Commission in 2022 that took effect April 2023 cut solar incentives dramatically leaving new solar customers with smaller credits from private utilities by at least 75% there are lots of benefits that used to be counted when we looked at the costs and benefits of solar and the Pu completely changed that calculation so much so that they slashed the payments that people who have solar on their rooftops get for extra power that they sell back to the system and that made it econom ically not feasible for a lot of businesses in California families now many homeowners question whether those savings and subsidies that made the transition to solar possible still balance out the higher upfront costs I sat down with former CPU commissioner Loretta Lynch for answers why would the CPU vote in favor of that I think that the regulator has become the regulated they are just too cozy with pg& and when pg& says jump instead of saying why they say how high reached out to pg& about the cpuc vote they say quote incentives need to be fair and Equitable for all customers because of the state policy non-solar residential customers today pay 15% more per month to subsidize the electric bills of those with rooftop solar panels the CPU said in December 2022 that quote the decision improves the pricing structure and credits to new rooftop solar customers of pg& Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas and Electric the new tariff supplements and bolsters Federal incentives and the decision has no impact on existing rooftop solar customers maintaining their current compensation rates although the new metering rates only apply to new solar customers who started solar after April 2023 solar customers like the harmans will be subject to the new rates 20 years after their solar system was first turned on what's the incentive to go solar if you're not going to get enough money to make it worth your while the harmans have already seen what it's like to pay more for electricity a few years into their solar use the Harmon say their solar system was broken for more than 7 months they say they paid hundreds of dollars more for their utilities during that time so that shows you when you don't have solar and you're getting build for electricity at the high rates you're paying a lot more solar Advocates like bernardet Del kiaro with the California solar and storage Association oppose the change in incentives from private utility companies saying it makes solar unaffordable it was a steep reduction in the value and it took effect basically right away and so there was no adjustments uh to the industry and so it the result of that consumers predictably stopped going solar our Market is down 60 to 80% in 2006 California launched a million solar roofs initiative jump starting the clean energy industry in the wake of rolling blackouts and the Enron Scandal by 2019 the state hit its Millions solar roof's goal calling for a new goal 1 million solar batteries a year prior in 2018 state senator Scott weer passed sb700 to incentivize solar batteries through consumer rebates managed by the CPU but solar Advocates believe progress stopped under the Newsome Administration who appoints Commissioners to the cpuc they say since 2022 some incentives have been slashed for homeowners businesses schools and more it's very UNC California it's hard to even recognize California right now when it comes to clean energy policy we used to be the world's leader when it comes to solar energy people look to us for how to build a vibrant affordable diverse Market the change in incentives has impacted thousands of jobs and dozens of businesses have closed or left the state the question right now for the solar industry of California is have we hit rock bottom yet or is there more decline to come in 2020 C mandated all New home builds must have solar panels on them this has added tens of thousands of dollars to the cost of a new home solar Advocates argue with less solar incentives those homeowners are now shouldering those added costs for longer while solar is still a really good investment you have to wait longer for the system to pay for itself right the whole idea is you save on your utility bill and The Upfront cost of the solar system pays for itself over time Del kiaro says it used to take about 5 years to have your solar system pay for itself but now she says that range is about 10 years for a lot of consumers that's just too long to wait what would you say to homeowners businesses consumers who are struggling with solar trying to make it pencil out I would say still give it a good Fair Shake take a look see if it works for you some payment options include leasing your solar rolling your solar into your mortgage or thirdparty financing if you don't have Equity what do you think is the right path for California and solar companies we need to be putting solar wherever it's possible Let's Go Solar with or without the Pu and then let's change out the people who are standing in the way of really reaching our climate goals as for the Harmons they're bracing for any changes that may come their way but worry about other customers and the future of solar what is the incentive if you're going to penalize people for getting solar why get solar and where's the argument that we are green California when you're doing things like this Laura a lot to take in and we do want to point out that California is not the only state to change their solar incentives right yeah Alex that is correct and now some efforts are underway in other states to add those incentives back in fact Nevada's utility Regulators approved restoring retail rate net metering for their existing customers after taking some incentives away they reportedly saw a 32% loss in the state's installation sector and a loss of more than 2500 jobs in Arizona Iona a state Supreme Court ruling ended up sparing thousands of homeowners who leased their solar from paying state property taxes on it the solar Advocates say rulings and votes like these could Point California back in the right direction and Alex I did reach out to the CPU pg& and Governor nome's office they all referred me to statements online by the CPU and pg& which are referenced in this story all right Laura thank you so much and you already know we will continue to follow this story ...
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