The bill establishes a community solar facility program in Iowa, which aims to promote solar energy generation and enhance participation from electric utility customers in alternative solar energy projects. It introduces new legal definitions, including "community solar facility," which refers to a distributed generation facility that generates electricity through solar panels, allowing subscribers to receive bill credits proportional to their subscription size. The bill also defines "brownfield site" and outlines the roles of subscribers and subscriber organizations, which can be either for-profit or nonprofit entities that own or operate community solar facilities.

Key provisions of the bill include stipulations that community solar facilities will not be classified as public utilities, and the provision of electricity from these facilities will not be deemed unnecessary duplication of electric utility facilities. The bill mandates electric utilities to review their interconnection processes to ensure efficiency and cost-effectiveness, and it requires them to provide bill credits to subscribers for at least twenty-five years. Additionally, the bill outlines decommissioning requirements for community solar facilities, including financial assurances for decommissioning costs. By January 1, 2026, electric utilities must file new or updated tariffs to implement the changes mandated by this legislation.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 476.1, 476.50