dated June 3, 2015, entitled Energy Division Staff Paper Presenting Proposals for Alternatives to the NEM Successor Tariff or Contract for Residential Customers in Disadvantaged Communities in Compliance with AB 327 (Staff Paper), which offered two proposals for alternatives to any NEM successor tariff or contract, and modeled the elements that party proposals for alternatives for DACs should include. In response to the June Ruling, nine parties submitted proposals that addressed alternatives for DACs (2015 Proposals). Comments on parties’ proposals were filed on September 1, 2015; reply comments were filed on September 15, 2015. In Decision (D.)16-01-044, the Commission adopted a NEM successor tariff (often referred to as “NEM 2.0”) for use by residential In that decision, the Commission deferred adoption of alternatives for DACs, along with the implementation of AB 693 (Eggman), Stats. 2015, ch. 582, creating a Multi-family Affordable Housing Solar Roofs Program, to a second phase of the proceeding to ensure full consideration of both issues. An Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) Ruling issued on March 14, 2017 (March 2017 Ruling), sought updated proposals and/or comments on alternatives for DACs. That ruling stated that proposals and comments should assume that the Commission will count the program it adopts to implement AB 693 “toward the satisfaction of the commission’s obligation to ensure . . . specific alternatives designed for growth among residential customers in disadvantaged communities. . .” (Section 2870(b)(1).), and sought proposals for alternatives for DACs that are distinct from any program implementing AB 693. In formulating these proposals, the ruling directed parties, for the purposes of DAC tariff options, to propose a DAC definition with reference to the most recent screening tool developed by the California Environmental Protection
benefit from the development of solar generation projects located in their own or nearby disadvantaged communities. The program is similar to the current VNEM programs but tailored to the most disadvantaged communities in PG&E, SCE and SDG&E’s territories. The program draws from the 2015 Staff proposal and the proposals of Joint Solar Parties and CEJA/SELC (and comments thereupon). As discussed herein, this program will provide benefits to the participating customers, benefits to their communities, and benefits to the environment. The Community Solar program, along with the GTSR program, fill gaps among the various current solar programs because they benefit homeowners with unsuitable roofs and renters. Moreover, the Community Solar program provides these low-income customers opportunities to generate their own solar power. Background Customers who install small solar, wind, biogas, and fuel cell generation facilities to serve all or a portion of onsite electricity needs are eligible for the state's net metering program (NEM). NEM allows customers who generate their own energy ("customer-generators") to serve their energy needs directly onsite and to receive a financial credit on their electric bills at the end of a 12-month billing cycle for any surplus energy fed back to their utility. The current NEM program (the “NEM Successor Tariff”) was adopted by the Commission in and is available to customers of PG&E, SCE and SDG&E. The program provides customer-generators full retail rate credits for energy exported to the grid and requires them to pay certain charges that align NEM customer costs more closely with non-NEM customer costs. Any customer-generator applying for NEM must pay non-bypassable charges on each kilowatt-hour of electricity they consume from the grid in each metered interval to fund public
meets this test. Joint Solar Parties opines that while the customer generator definition in §2827(b)(4)(A) would seem to preclude VNEM generators from being located on sites with de minimus loads, such provision is not an absolute barrier to the Commission’s adoption of the Joint Solar Parties’ proposal. They propose the Commission exercise its responsibility to interpret the Public Utilities Code consistent with its intent to ensure disadvantaged communities are afforded a reasoned opportunity to participate in NEM programs. P.U. Code Section 2827.1(c) states: Beginning July 1, 2017, or when ordered to do so by the commission because the large electrical corporation has reached its capacity limitation of subparagraph (B) of paragraph (4) of subdivision (c) of Section 2827, all new eligible customer-generators shall be subject to the standard contract or tariff developed by the commission and any rules, terms, and rates developed pursuant to subdivision (b). There shall be no limitation on the amount of generating capacity or number of new eligible customer-generators entitled to receive service pursuant to the standard contract or tariff after July 1, 2017. An eligible that has received service under a net energy metering standard contract or tariff pursuant to Section 2827 that is no longer eligible to receive service shall be eligible to receive service pursuant to the standard contract or tariff developed by the commission pursuant to this section. P.U. Code Section 2827(b)(4)(A) states: “Eligible customer-generator” means a residential customer, small commercial customer as defined in subdivision (h) of Section 331, or commercial, industrial, or agricultural customer of an electric utility, who uses a renewable electrical generation facility, or a combination of those facilities, with a total capacity of not more than one megawatt, that is located on the customer’s owned, leased, or rented premises, and is interconnected and operates in parallel with the electrical grid, and is intended primarily to offset part or all of the customer’s own electrical requirements.