The bill proposes significant amendments to New Hampshire's laws regarding community solar projects and net energy metering. Key changes include raising the capacity limit for low-moderate income community solar projects and redefining "political subdivision" to include not-for-profits, while eliminating the previous mention of special purpose entities. The bill allows group net metering members to form agreements with multiple hosts, as long as their total load remains within individual capacity limits. Additionally, it requires the Department to report on the costs and benefits of low-moderate income community solar projects and mandates the authorization of at least two new projects annually within each utility's service area.

In terms of net energy metering, the bill increases the capacity limit for eligible customer-generators from 100 kilowatts to 500 kilowatts and establishes a structured allocation of capacity, reserving 80% for facilities with a capacity of 500 kilowatts or less and 20% for those between 500 kilowatts and one megawatt. It also introduces a new definition for "low-moderate income community solar project," allowing a total peak generating capacity of up to 3 megawatts, benefiting at least five residential customers with specific income criteria. Furthermore, the bill sets a cap of 18 megawatts on the total nameplate capacity for designated community solar projects and requires customer-generators with facilities over 500 kilowatts to pay applicable charges, minus credits for energy fed back into the system. Overall, the bill aims to enhance community solar frameworks while ensuring fair access to net metering capacity.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 362-A:9, 362-F:2, 362-A:1-a