THR: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Ed Norton Advocate for CA Solar Incentives
California’s solar power future has been up for debate in recent weeks and Hollywood — from Arnold Schwarzenegger and Lance Bass to Edward Norton and Mark Ruffalo — is weighing in.
In December, the California Public Utilities Commission issued a proposal that, if approved, would cut incentives for homeowners with rooftop solar panels, while implementing a new monthly fee for solar customers to connect to the power grid. It would also create a $600 million fund for underrepresented communities to have increased access to solar power.
Under the current system, known as net energy metering, rooftop solar residents receive the retail power rate for the energy they send to the grid; the proposal would reduce that compensation by as much as 80 percent. It would also roughly double how long it takes Californians to make back what they paid to install the systems, upping to about 10 years. The CPUC is set to discuss the proposal at its Jan. 27 meeting.