Property Brother: The benefits of rooftop solar should be accessible for every Californian

When I moved to California for love, I didn’t realize the place would steal my heart, too.

It’s more than the natural beauty and great weather that convinced me to make the Golden State my home — I’m also proud to live in a place that has emerged as a global leader in the shift to 100% clean energy.

But that could soon change. Monopoly utilities more intent on profit than progress hope to make a different example out of California by delivering a knock-out blow to the rooftop solar industry with an unreasonable proposal to the California Public Utility Commission and an even worse policy at the state legislature with Assembly Bill 1139.

The state’s three biggest power companies, Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric, want to eliminate compensation solar customers earn for any excess power they send back to the grid, an agreement known as net-metering. But it’s more like net-plundering under their proposed policies. They also want to charge everyone who owns rooftop solar a monthly solar tax of up to $90 — essentially penalizing solar adopters for investing in clean energy.

We’ve seen this same power struggle play out again and again.

I lived through it in Las Vegas, where I naively thought installing solar on my home was an easy and obvious choice. Instead, I watched the monopoly utility gut its net-metering program and effectively bankrupt Nevada’s solar industry, putting thousands of people out of work. Only after politicians faced an ugly backlash from the public was the decision finally reversed.

Why am I voicing my opinion? Why shouldn’t I just keep swinging a hammer and being a “Property Brother”? It’s for the same reason I dedicated the past three years to investigating utility attacks on solar for my documentary, “Power Trip.” Sadly, the utilities usually win, and it’s always with the same playbook. Spend a lot on ads, confuse the public and roll back clean energy progress.

If passed, these proposals would put renewable energy out of reach for most Californians, just as clean energy is becoming affordable for everyone. Dangling one-sided, empty promises as bait underestimates the intelligence and solidarity of Californians unwilling to be bullied into underwriting their own exploitation.

The domino effect of these anti-solar proposals would play out even worse than in Nevada given the size and importance of California’s rooftop solar industry. Many bankruptcies and a massive net job loss would sweep over the state. Solar in California employs more than 75,000 people compared to the 42,000 jobs created by the top three utilities. And guess what? There’s a different solution to keep and even expand all these jobs.

The problem is what happened in Vegas didn’t stay in Vegas.

Nevada’s reversal didn’t give greedy utilities elsewhere a moment’s pause. If anything, they retrenched and have mowed over solar consumers state after state.

California is their most-important battleground. We see nirvana, they see Waterloo.

The CPUC’s mission states that it “regulates services and utilities, protects consumers, safeguards the environment, and assures Californians’ access to safe and reliable utility infrastructure and services.”

We have the mandates in place, plus the technology and public support to completely rid ourselves of dependence on fossil fuels. The path to that carbon-free goal is clear and attainable by the 2040 deadline Gov. Gavin Newsom has set, if not sooner.

The current utility proposals as written would throw the gears in reverse and make California the most expensive state in the country for rooftop solar.

We’re at a critical junction: Clean energy is not an either-or debate anymore, and the sun doesn’t sign exclusivity deals.

That said, net-metering could use an update, and it’s time we all agree that the state should ensure that the benefits of rooftop solar can be enjoyed by any Californian, at any socioeconomic level. There are fair and equitable resolutions at hand for everyone here, but these utilities proposals are neither. So let’s set politics aside and start talking.

Now, as a Californian, I’m calling on the CPUC and Gov. Newsom to keep the state at the forefront of a fight the planet can’t afford to lose. Please add your voices to mine. We don’t need to rely on hindsight anymore to enlighten us. We need foresight.

Let’s show the rest of the country and the world how it’s done.

This story was originally published May 22, 2021 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Property Brother: The benefits of rooftop solar should be accessible for every Californian."