Dive Brief:
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American Legislative Exchange Council-backed bills that would have imposed fees on rooftop solar and made other changes to net metering laws in Utah and Washington were defeated, according to a group representing solar developers.
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In Washington, HB 2176 and HB 1301 would have imposed a fee on rooftop solar and allowed only utilities to offer third-party solar leasing, according to the Alliance for Solar Choice (TASC).
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In Utah, Rocky Mountain Power pressed for amendments to SB 208 that included a solar fee and other possible changes to the state's net metering rules, according to TASC. Lawmakers passed the bill, which calls for a study of the value of distributed generation, without the amendments.
Dive Insight:
Last year, ALEC failed to roll back state renewable portfolio standards. This year, the conservative organization added net metering to its list of issues it wanted to tackle and, so far, has failed to make progress there.
States like Arizona, Colorado and Minnesota are carefully reviewing issues surrounding the rise of rooftop solar rather than making any hasty decisions.
