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Rooftop Solar Industry Says Rate Changes Could Spell Doom

Michael Mazengarb
/
Flickr, Creative Commons

Advocates for the rooftop solar industry say a proposal under consideration by state utilities regulators could gut their growing business.

The Public Utilities Commission is scheduled to decide before the end of the year whether to end a policy known as “net-metering.”

It requires utilities to pay households with rooftop solar panels for excess energy that feeds the grid. Utilities must pay the same rate as they charge customers for energy.

PG&E has asked the commission to lower the rate, making it closer to what the company pays other generators. 

This story was produced by Capital Public Radio.

Ben Bradford is a city kid, who came to Charlotte from San Francisco by way of New York, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles. Prior to his career in journalism, Ben spent time as an actor, stuntman, viral marketer, and press secretary for a Member of Congress. He graduated from UCLA in 2005 with a degree in theater and from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism in 2012. As a reporter, his work has been featured on NPR, WNYC, the BBC, and Public Radio International. [Copyright 2025 WFAE]