Tag Archives: Energy Policy / Independence

Solar carve-outs

More than thirty states in the United States currently have renewable energy policies. Most of these goals, targets, and mandates allow for compliance from a range of different types of renewable energy technologies. In a few cases, however, states have included a technology-specific mandate as a part of their renewable energy policies. One such policy mechanism is a solar carve-out.

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What’s happening to net metering in California? A Q&A with CALSSA

California has historically been the best market for solar in the US, and the success of the solar industry as a whole can largely be traced back to the success of solar in California. In fact, out of the more than 2.5 million residential solar installations in the US, more than 1.2 million are in California alone! 

However, the future of solar in California –and of residential solar in particular–hangs in the balance. In a current review of the future of net metering in the state, a series of proposals before the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) recommend significantly reducing the value of residential net metering credits. For a sense of the types of proposals submitted, check out this joint proposal from the major utilities in the state, which would reduce residential net metering credits to 23 percent of their value today and impose a monthly fee on solar owners of nearly $80 per month, making new residential solar all but impossible in the state. 

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Looking into the future: highlights from the 2019 IREC Vision Summit

On March 6, 2019, the Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC) hosted their inaugural Vision Summit, a conference designed to bring industry thought leaders and policy analysts together to discuss what a clean energy future might look like and what it would take to achieve that vision. EnergySage joined these industry leaders down in Washington, DC to participate in the Summit and to engage with the question of how solar will contribute to the renewable energy transition. Here are our key takeaways from the event.

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SEIA lobby day roundup

The growth of the solar industry over the last ten years is in large part thanks to successful public policy and legislation at the federal, state and local levels. To engage with the hot topics in solar policy today, and to help guide the discussion of solar policy in the future, EnergySage joined the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) on Capitol Hill to talk to members of Congress about solar in the US.

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