The growth of consumer-owned rooftop solar projects as a solution to decarbonizing the electricity sector has widespread bipartisan support. It’s an effective tool to help achieve the nation’s clean energy goals while also promoting consumer choice.
But if you look at what is happening across the country, it is hard not to notice that while Democrats may talk a lot about the importance of solar energy, it is Republicans who are acting.
Let’s start at the federal level. President Joe Biden recently allowed a petition to move forward alleging solar manufacturers in Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam circumvented antidumping and countervailing duties (AD/CVD).
While tariffs are one way to encourage domestic manufacturing – a Biden priority – they also harm U.S.-based companies that have to compete for materials. Competitive third-party solar providers have struggled with higher solar panel prices caused by the threat of tariffs. The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) estimates that 46 percent of the projects that were projected for 2022 or 2023 would be delayed or not happen at all if the government imposes retroactive tariffs.
A bipartisan group of senators recently sent a letter to President Joe Biden asking him to expedite the investigation, cautioning that “initiation of this investigation is already causing massive disruption in the solar industry, and it will severely harm American solar businesses and workers and increase costs for American families as long as it continues.”
At the state level, the contrast between the actions of Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom of California and Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida could not be sharper. California’s regulatory battle over rooftop solar is a complete mess, with environmental groups split over incentivizing homeowners to install solar panels by paying them for the excess energy they produce. Environmental justice advocates argue that incentives for homeowners skew the benefits to predominantly white, wealthy homeowners and force others to pay the savings solar adopters receive.
But it’s California’s net-metering program that has made the state a leader in rooftop solar. Democrats aligned with big utilities have tried to undercut the amount homeowners are paid for the electricity they generate and put back on the grid – undercutting the value of homeowners’ clean energy investment.
The upfront cost of installing a rooftop solar system is often prohibitive for homeowners without incentives like net-metering programs. Unfortunately, Gov. Newsom has been mostly absent in the debate. Apparently, too afraid to pick a side and risk angering key interest groups on the left, he has chosen to stay on the sidelines, leaving a devastating lack of clarity in the state’s regulatory approach to rooftop solar.
No one can accuse Gov. DeSantis of being afraid to take a stand in Florida. DeSantis vetoed a bill that would have allowed Florida’s incumbent utilities to impose steep fees on businesses and homeowners who install solar panels. The utilities argue that they are losing revenue due to the higher than expected adoption of rooftop solar in Florida. DeSantis countered that the additional costs that consumers would have to bear would be prohibitive.
In fact, the bill language would have required solar customers to pay all fixed costs of having access to transmission lines and backup energy generation as determined by Florida’s Public Service Commission. In contrast, the homeowners with rooftop solar would not have received any benefits for reducing the utility’s electricity demand. DeSantis’ veto was a show of leadership that Newsom could learn from.
Finally, in Wisconsin, two Republican state legislators sponsored a bill to clarify that utility customers do not need to own their rooftop solar installations. The legislation authorizes an arrangement known as third-party solar, in which a company installs panels on a customer’s property and then either leases the panels or sells the power or net-metering credits to the owner. This type of legal clarity is something solar advocates and developers have sought for quite some time and is a welcome development.
Unfortunately, Wisconsin Democrats killed the bill at the behest of labor unions. The continued regulatory uncertainty in the state will reduce consumer choice and hurt the expansion of clean energy. It is frustrating to hear Democrats crow about decarbonization and attack oil companies while they continue to put their own special interests before the public interest in reducing carbon emissions.
As the old saying goes, “actions speak louder than words.” If true, then, when it comes to supporting solar energy and putting consumers first, the actions of Republicans speak much louder than Democrats.