The bill amends Chapter 39-26.4 of the General Laws, titled "Net Metering," to redefine the term "eligible net-metering system" by removing the requirement for a three-year average annual consumption of energy at the electric distribution account(s) located at the eligible net-metering system site. It allows property owners with eligible net-metering systems that have a master meter to allocate excess net-metering credits to any meter on the property, including those in the property owner's name or those with the owner listed as the customer of record.

The bill introduces specific eligibility criteria for systems based on their nameplate capacity. For systems with a nameplate capacity in excess of twenty-five kilowatts (25 kW), the eligibility is based on the system being reasonably designed and sized to produce electricity annually. For systems with a nameplate capacity equal to or less than twenty-five kilowatts (25 kW), eligibility shall not be restricted based on prior consumption.

The calculation of excess renewable net-metering credits is modified, shifting from the electric distribution company's avoided cost rate to the wholesale electricity rate, specifically the ISO-New England energy clearing price. For electrical energy produced greater than one hundred percent (100%) of the renewable self-generator's own electricity consumption, excess renewable net-metering credits shall be equal to the wholesale electricity rate.

Additionally, the bill allows customers to cash out any credit balance remaining after the annual reconciliation of renewable net-metering credits, with the cash-out amount being the lower of the credit balance shown from the reconciliation or the credit balance on the date the electric distribution company processes the cash out.

The bill also extends the exclusion of distribution kilowatt-hour charges for remote public entity and multi-municipal collaborative net-metering systems until January 1, 2060. This act would take effect upon passage.