An Act to Improve Access to Community Solar Programs in the
Maine Legislature, Session 132, LD 1966
Committee: Energy, Utilities and Technology
Sponsors: WARREN
Amends: 35-A MRSA §301, 35-A MRSA §1714, 35-A MRSA §3107, 35-A MRSA §3209-A, 35-A MRSA §3209-B

Legislative Document
No. 1966
H.P. 1310
House of Representatives, May 13, 2025
An Act to Improve Access to Community Solar Programs in the 
State
Reference to the Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology suggested and ordered 
printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative WARREN of Scarborough.
Cosponsored by Representative: KESSLER of South Portland.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  35-A MRSA §301, sub-§7 is enacted to read:
7.  Administrative charge limitations and transparency.  The following provisions 
govern administrative charges.
A. For purposes of this subsection, "administrative charge" means a fee or charge for 
services that is added to the actual cost of materials or supplies provided or labor 
performed by or on behalf of a public utility with over 50,000 customers and charged 
to a public utility customer through a proposal, estimate, invoice or final accounting 
for the cost of interconnection, line extensions or work other than monthly electrical 
service.  "Administrative charge" includes, but is not limited to, administrative service 
charges, indirect overhead costs and cost adders.  "Administrative charge" does not 
include: 
(1)  Expenses for a public utility employee's labor while directly engaged in the 
work for which a customer is billed; or
(2)  Expenses related to the purchase, storage or delivery of materials or supplies 
incorporated into the work if the customer bill states that those expenses are 
included in the cost of materials and supplies. 
B. The commission shall conduct one or more proceedings beginning in 2025 and every 
years thereafter to review and investigate administrative charges demanded or 
collected by a public utility with over 50,000 customers under paragraph A to ensure 
that such administrative charges comply with the provisions of this section.  The initial 
investigation by the commission must review administrative charges demanded or 
collected in the prior 5 years.  If the commission finds that a public utility has 
overcollected administrative charges from one or more customers or ratepayers, the 
commission may:
(1) Order the utility to refund to the customer any excess administrative charges 
paid by the customer; or 
(2) If paid by ratepayers, order the utility to refund excess administrative charges 
in future rates. 
C. By September 1, 2026, the commission shall adopt rules requiring that a public 
utility described in paragraph B disclose all administrative charges on any proposal, 
estimate or invoice for work charged to a customer or to ratepayers.  If any line item in 
a proposal, estimate or invoice includes an administrative charge, the proposal, 
estimate or invoice must disclose the amount of the administrative charge for that line 
item and the activities the administrative charge covers.  Rules adopted pursuant to this 
paragraph are routine technical rules as described in Title 5, chapter 375, subsection 
2-A. 
D. The commission shall submit a report to the joint standing committee of the 
Legislature having jurisdiction over utilities matters and the Governor's Energy Office 
following an investigation under paragraph B by July 1st of the following year. 
Sec. 2.  35-A MRSA §1714, sub-§2, ¶C, as enacted by PL 2021, c. 623, §2, is 
amended by amending subparagraph (2) to read:
(2)  Improve education and outreach efforts regarding electric assistance programs, 
the retail electricity supply market and energy efficiency programs; and
Sec. 3.  35-A MRSA §1714, sub-§2, ¶C, as enacted by PL 2021, c. 623, §2, is 
amended by enacting a new subparagraph (4) to read:
(4)  Improve access to and use of community solar programs by low-income and 
moderate-income persons in the State; and
Sec. 4.  35-A MRSA §3107, sub-§2, as enacted by PL 2019, c. 88, §1 and 
reallocated by RR 2019, c. 1, Pt. A, §49, is amended to read:
2.  Consumer assistance.  Require a customer bill issued by an investor-owned 
transmission and distribution utility to display clearly and prominently the toll-free 
telephone number for the commission's consumer assistance and safety division and a 
statement of the consumer assistance services available by calling the division; and
Sec. 5.  35-A MRSA §3107, sub-§3, as enacted by PL 2019, c. 88, §1 and 
reallocated by RR 2019, c. 1, Pt. A, §49, is amended to read:
3.  Correction of misleading information.  Establish a process by which, if the 
commission finds that an investor-owned transmission and distribution utility has included 
on customer bills, or inserts or attachments to customer bills, information that is 
misleading, deceptive or inaccurate, the transmission and distribution utility is required to 
provide to customers a statement that corrects the misleading, deceptive or inaccurate 
information that was disseminated.  Upon request of the Public Advocate, the commission 
shall investigate the truth and accuracy of information included on customer bills, or inserts 
or attachments to customer bills.; and
Sec. 6.  35-A MRSA §3107, sub-§4 is enacted to read:
4.  Public policy charges.  Require an investor-owned transmission and distribution 
utility that includes public policy charges on customer bills to include on the customer bill 
an accurate and comprehensive description of all costs and benefits of public policy 
charges, including, but not limited to, energy efficiency programs, renewable energy 
programs and low-income energy assistance programs.
Sec. 7.  35-A MRSA §3209-A, sub-§1, ¶B-1 is enacted to read:
B-1.  "Net crediting" means a manner of consolidated billing for distributed generation 
resources in which the transmission and distribution utility applies the net value of the 
bill credit on the participating customer's bills and provides payment for the 
subscription fee directly to the project sponsor no later than 30 days after the final day 
of the billing period in which the energy was generated, regardless of the payment 
made by the customer.  The net value of the bill credit must be calculated as the 
participating customer's total kilowatt-hour credit for the billing period multiplied by 
the customer's savings rate, as provided by the project sponsor.
Sec. 8.  35-A MRSA §3209-A, sub-§10 is enacted to read:
10.  Consolidated billing.  By June 1, 2026, the commission shall provide by rule that 
a transmission and distribution utility must offer consolidated billing to a distributed 
generation resource at the distributed generation resource's request.  The consolidated 
billing method must use net crediting.  The commission shall consider whether a 
transmission and distribution utility may require a fee for a project sponsor or distributed 
generation resource that uses net crediting.  Such a fee may not exceed 1% of the 
subscription fee.  In implementing net crediting, the commission shall require a project 
sponsor to provide the applicable transmission and distribution utility with each customer's 
savings rate.  The project sponsor shall set a residential customer's savings rate higher than 
zero.  A distributed generation resource may include different savings rates for customers 
participating under the same distributed generation resource.  Each transmission and 
distribution utility shall use the same net crediting format for customers on payment plans 
or participating in budget billing programs.  A transmission and distribution utility shall 
implement net crediting so it may be used by distributed generation resources by January 
1, 2027.
Sec. 9.  35-A MRSA §3209-A, sub-§11 is enacted to read:
11.  Data access.  For a customer participating in net energy billing, a transmission and 
distribution utility shall provide the relevant project sponsor with the customer's usage and 
billing information, including net energy billing data needed to administer a customer's net 
energy billing arrangement, as long as the project sponsor has received the customer's 
authorization. 
Sec. 10.  35-A MRSA §3209-B, sub-§1, ¶C-1 is enacted to read:
C-1.  "Net crediting" has the same meaning as in section 3209-A, subsection 1, 
paragraph B-1.
Sec. 11.  35-A MRSA §3209-B, sub-§9 is enacted to read:
9.  Consolidated billing.  By June 1, 2026, the commission shall provide by rule that 
a transmission and distribution utility must offer consolidated billing to a distributed 
generation resource at the distributed generation resource's request.  The consolidated 
billing method must use net crediting.  The commission shall consider whether a 
transmission and distribution utility may require a fee for a project sponsor or distributed 
generation resource that uses net crediting.  Such a fee may not exceed 1% of the 
subscription fee.  In implementing net crediting, the commission shall require a project 
sponsor to provide the applicable transmission and distribution utility with each customer's 
savings rate.  The project sponsor shall set a customer's savings rate higher than zero.  A 
distributed generation resource may include different savings rates for customers 
participating under the same distributed generation resource.  Each transmission and 
distribution utility shall use the same net crediting format for customers on payment plans 
or participating in budget billing programs.  A transmission and distribution utility shall 
implement net crediting so it may be used by distributed generation resources by January 
1, 2027.
Sec. 12.  Public Utilities Commission to conduct proceeding.  The Public 
Utilities Commission shall conduct, by December 31, 2025, a proceeding pursuant to the 
Maine Revised Statutes, Title 35-A, section 3209-E, subsection 2, paragraph A to examine 
and evaluate opt-in program designs to reduce net energy billing costs.  The commission 
shall report its findings and its plans for further action to the Joint Standing Committee on 
Energy, Utilities and Technology no later than March 31, 2026.
SUMMARY
This bill directs the Public Utilities Commission to conduct one or more proceedings 
beginning in 2025 and every 5 years thereafter to review and investigate administrative 
charges demanded or collected by a public utility with over 50,000 customers.  If the 
commission finds that a utility has overcollected administrative charges from one or more 
customers or ratepayers, the commission may order the utility to refund to a customer any 
excess charges paid by the customer or, if paid by ratepayers, order the utility to refund 
excess charges in future rates.  The commission is also directed to adopt rules requiring a 
utility to disclose all administrative charges on any proposal, estimate or invoice for work 
charged to a customer or to ratepayers.  The commission must report to the joint standing 
committee of the Legislature having jurisdiction over utilities matters and to the Governor's 
Energy Office following each investigation. 
The bill requires the Electric Ratepayer Advisory Council, in developing 
recommendations to the Public Advocate regarding methods to ensure that ratepayers are 
able to afford electricity in the State, to identify methods to improve access to and use of 
community solar programs by low-income and moderate-income persons in the State. 
The bill requires the commission, by June 1, 2026, to require a transmission and 
distribution utility to offer consolidated billing to a distributed generation resource at its 
request.
The bill requires the commission to establish customer bill information requirements 
that require a customer bill issued by an investor-owned transmission and distribution 
utility that includes public policy charges on customer bills to include an accurate and 
comprehensive description of all costs and benefits of public policy charges.
The bill requires the commission to conduct, by December 31, 2025, a proceeding to 
examine and evaluate opt-in program designs to reduce net energy billing costs.  The 
commission must report its findings and plans for future action to the Joint Standing 
Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technology no later than March 31, 2026.