SPONSOR: Keathley
This bill establishes a community solar pilot program requiring each retail electric supplier to implement a three-year community solar pilot program during calendar years 2026-2028. Retail electric suppliers must allow subscriber administrators and owners or operators of community solar facilities to recruit customers as subscribers and process subscribers' bill credits as specified in the bill. Each retail electric supplier must continue operating its pilot program until the total solar electricity demand equals 5% of the retail electric supplier's electricity sales for the previous year.
A community solar facility may be built, owned, or operated by a third party entity under contract with an owner or operator of a community solar facility or a subscriber administrator. A subscriber administrator may contract to administer bill credits to the subscriber's electricity bill generated by the subscriber's share of the community solar facility. A subscriber administrator that provides a bill credit to a subscriber is not considered an electrical corporation or public utility. The owner or operator of a community solar facility may serve as a subscriber administrator.
No later than nine months after the effective date of the bill, the Public Service Commission must establish the value of the bill credit for each retail electric supplier to offset each subscriber's retail electric bill for each kilowatt hour subscribed from a community solar facility as specified in the bill.
A retail electric supplier must allow for the transferability and portability of subscriptions. On a monthly basis, a subscriber administrator is required to update the subscriber administrator's list of subscribers. The bill specifies the duties of and compensation for a retail electric supplier.
Each community solar facility must be subscribed with at least 10% low-income customers and 20% residential customers. A retail electric supplier must purchase unsubscribed energy from a community solar facility as specified in the bill.
Interconnection standards for community solar facilities under 100 kilowatts are the same as those for net-metered customers. For systems larger than 100 kilowatts, the Commission must develop technical and net metering interconnection rules for customer- generators intending to operate community solar facilities or renewable on-site generators in parallel with the electric utility grid. This bill is the same as SB 386 (2025).
Statutes affected: