Providing tax credits or rebates for solar systems is only one element of good policy. In order to establish an effective solar program, rules need to be established that give consumers easy access to the grid.
In the U.S., those rules mostly come in the form of Net Metering and Interconnection standards. Net Metering allows an owner of a residential or small-commercial system to receive credit from a utility for any excess generation fed into the grid. Interconnection standards establish the rules that consumers must follow in order to place a system in service. If the rules are not clear or are too burdensome, adoption of solar is slowed.
So how does your state stack up? The latest “Freeing the Grid” report from the Network for New Energy Choices grades state-level solar programs on consumer access. Here are the rankings:
This is the fifth year the rankings have been established. The state-level landscape has changed a lot since NNEC started grading net metering and interconnection policies. In 2011, 17 states got “A’s” for their net metering policies — up from five in 2007. And this year, 23 states got “A’s” or “B’” for interconnection rules — up from only one “B” in 2007.
Let’s hope we can get all 50 states to make the rankings in 2012. That would be a huge step for the U.S. solar industry.
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Why am I not surprised that Georgia is tied for last place?
What are ‘interconnection rules”?
The “Freeing the Grid” link above provides more specifics & model rules to download in pdf format.
Thank you Stephen for this very useful connection!
I just did a mental geographical exercise…Florida is (A,C), and the rest of the Southeast is Georgia (F,-), South Carolina (F,F), North Carolina (D,B), Mississippi and Alabama, both (-,-), Louisiana (C,-). If you made a color coded map, basically the Deep South is Deep Horrible. Florida’s rules must have solidified before Rick Scott came along.
I have always been baffled by the unliberty wrt solar installations in the US. Even though The Netherlands is lagging behind in renewable energy development, you still can put a PV system on your roof without needing any permits. If you use more than your system generates, your energy company is obliged to pay the same price for energy that you feed into the grid as they charge you for usage. Only if you are a net generator, they can pay you whatever they like for the excess.
Why can’t the US adopt such a simple law?