MEDIA RELEASE
December 22, 2022 | For Immediate Release
Contacts:
Noah Rott, Associate Press Secretary, Sierra Club, noah.rott@sierraclub.org
Lisa Young, Idaho Chapter Director, Sierra Club, 208-841-8587, lisa.young@sierraclub.org
PUC Approves Idaho Power's Controversial Solar Study Amidst Widespread Public Opposition
Youth say PUC is sleeping at the wheel in Open Letter
BOISE, ID—On Monday, the Idaho Public Utilities Commission (PUC) released its decision to approve Idaho Power’s maligned and disputed “VODER” (value of solar) study, seemingly ignoring significant pushback from solar advocates and public commenters on the utility's years-long attempt to reduce rooftop solar compensation rates.
Despite receiving nearly 1,000 public comments and hearing a total of six hours of public testimony in Pocatello, Twin Falls, and Boise in early November—all in unanimous opposition to the study—the PUC agreed to approve Idaho Power’s study.
“This was a failed public process. Idaho Power customers who care about fair and affordable rooftop solar—from farmers to doctors, business owners, high school students, and young families—took time out of their busy schedules to urge the PUC to reject Idaho Power’s solar study and request a more accurate and unbiased analysis,” said Lisa Young, Director of the Idaho Chapter of the Sierra Club. “But the PUC ignored all that input, requiring no additional changes to Idaho Power’s study after listening to six hours of powerful public testimony.”
“Your power to regulate exists to protect the community, not the profits of Idaho Power, and you have utterly failed to wield this power in any meaningful way,” wrote local youth from the group Idaho Climate Justice League in an Open Letter to the PUC, many of whom testified at the hearings and submitted written comments. “It’s disingenuous to say you ‘appreciate the robust level of public participation’ when it made no difference in your decision.”
The final approved study incorporated only a few small changes from the original draft the utility published in June, in response to requests from PUC staff. The estimated export credit rates in the study would reduce the current 8-10 ¢/kWh compensation rate to solar owners to only 2.8-4.0 ¢/kWh. This estimation is lowballed, according to an independent study, which concluded the true value is actually closer to 18.3 ¢/kWh.
The independent study showed that Idaho Power’s study had many errors, including outdated energy prices that don’t reflect the current market and lowball estimates of solar’s ability to meet Idaho Power customers’ energy needs and avoid costly investments in transmission and distribution infrastructure. The utility’s study also failed to include factors the PUC directed it to consider, including rooftop solar’s ability to hedge against fuel price risk and provide environmental benefits.
“This is unjust,” wrote local youth in their Open Letter to the PUC. “What may seem like a simple case on a utility’s solar study actually sets a dangerous precedent for all future rate cases on solar—Idaho Power will continue squandering residential and community owned solar in an effort to own it all themselves and line their pockets while leaving no alternatives for folks hoping to choose where their energy comes from.”
If the values from Idaho Power’s study are implemented, their rooftop solar compensation rates could be among the lowest of any utility in the country, which will also impact solar jobs and local companies in the state. Most states offer retail rate compensation using net metering.
Idaho Power will now propose a new compensation rate structure with lower export credit rates for solar owners, which will open yet another case at the PUC next year and provide another opportunity for public input. You can view all utility documents and public comments on this case on the PUC's website here.
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STATEMENTS FROM LOCAL SOLAR BUSINESSES & CONSERVATION GROUPS
Empowered Solar
Alex McKinley, Owner
"Idahoans are eager to invest in an efficient, resilient, and modern electrical grid. It is unfortunate that Idaho Power continues to view customer owned generation as a threat instead of as an asset. When valued fairly, solar power and other distributed renewable generation can help reduce our dependence on imported electricity, provide cost stability for all customers, and limit the impacts of the heat waves, droughts and physical attacks that our electrical infrastructure is increasingly facing. By ignoring public input and accepting Idaho Power’s biased analysis, the PUC has put corporate profits ahead of grid reliability and affordability for consumers. Idahoans deserve better.”
Revolusun
Rachael Miller, General Manager
"The PUC’s decision to accept the study submitted by Idaho Power is disappointing. Thousands of members from the public, primarily customers of Idaho Power, bravely followed the difficult and confusing process of sharing their dissent of this order by submitting written comments and testimony at the PUC hearings. Unfortunately, the Commission failed to represent the public despite that participation. Nonetheless, it is very important that our community remains vigilant in the fight to protect net metering and continues to hold hope that the Commission will represent the public in the next and most important matter. We thank the commission for providing a forum for public input by holding hearings and ask that the Commission seriously listens to and represents the public in the next, most important phase of this process. Idaho Power customers and solar generators deserve to be compensated fairly for contributing clean, distributed, resilient energy for Idaho.”
Intermountain Wind and Solar
Doug Shipley, CEO/Founder
“When the people of Idaho look at what the future cost of energy will be and what their options to mitigate those costs are, nothing helps both the people of Idaho and the utility more than solar and storage (distributed energy) on rooftops and in garages all over the state. The studies used by Idaho Power are outdated and only give one point of view. This problem is solvable, but the utility should not penalize those who choose to limit their impact on both the grid and environment.”
Vote Solar
Kate Bowman, Interior West Regulatory Director
“Locally generated clean power is a smart way to meet Idaho residents’ and businesses’ energy needs. Investments in rooftop solar produce electricity right where it is needed, help to avoid the need to build expensive new energy resources, and improve local resiliency. Assigning a fair value for energy exported to the grid is critical to compensate solar customers for the clean energy they are generating and to ensure that homes and businesses can continue to make the choice to invest in solar in the future.”
Idaho Sierra Club
Lisa Young, Director
“Everyone has the right to generate their own electricity, and they should be fairly compensated for the extra clean, local power they put back on the grid. By accepting Idaho Power’s flawed study results, it will now be even harder for people to afford putting solar panels on their home, business, farm, or even on public buildings like schools. With the worsening climate crisis, we should be doing everything we can to make clean solar power more affordable and accessible, not less.”
Climate Action Coalition of the Wood River Valley
Scott Runkel, Member
“Blaine County has set a goal to achieve 100% clean electricity by 2035. If Idaho Power doesn’t correctly value customer generated roof-top solar, it will hamper our ability to generate local electricity, an important tool to achieve this goal.”
Martha Bibb, Member
“When someone provides clean power back to the grid from their solar panels, they deserve to be adequately compensated by the utility. I installed solar to help the environment, and I’ve not regretted that investment. Net metering helped to defray the initial investment. I’m worried others won’t get that opportunity now.”
Portneuf Resource Council
Mike Engle, Chair
“Portneuf Resource Council applauds Idaho Power’s commitment to 100% renewable energy by 2045 and encourages Idaho Power to respect Idahoan’s desire to participate and contribute to Idaho’s clean energy goals by supporting a fair and appropriate export credit rate (net metering) to customer generated power. The Idaho Power “Value of Distributed Energy Resources” (VODER) study finds the value of residential solar to be near the wholesale rate and it is clear they intend to use the results of this study to propose significantly reducing the export credit rate. The independent Crossborder Energy study, funded by an alliance of Idaho non-profit organizations including PRC, finds the value of distributed energy resources in Idaho to be nearly double the retail rate for electricity. Despite the Idaho PUC decision to accept Idaho Power's VODER study, there remain large discrepancies in the value of exported energy to the grid. The Portneuf Resource Council will continue to advocate for a fair and equitable export credit rate consistent with the value of energy in the Crossborder Energy study."
Snake River Alliance
Leigh Ford, Executive Director
“The Snake River Alliance stands in solidarity with Idaho Climate Justice League and all Idahoans who want fair, clear solar policy. The Idaho PUC decision to approve Idaho Power’s flawed study and ignore the people of Idaho was a blow, but we remain united and committed to fair net-metering policies. Idahoans deserve a fair shake.”
System Green
Cindy Su, Youth Leader & Founder of System Green
“Our organization was founded by youth because we care about the future of our planet. We are currently the ones that will be most affected by today’s actions. I am here to advocate for fair and up to date solar energy costs so that we can continue the momentum we have towards 100% clean energy. An unjust and outdated cost compensation for solar poses a roadblock towards getting to that goal, and that is why I am speaking here today, to overcome that.”
Climate Justice League, excerpts from testimonies at hearings
Nikita Thomas, Youth Activist
“In their VODER solar study, Idaho Power completely disregarded the benefits of solar on different sectors of the community and economy. This is due to their biased approach as they are only focusing on their profits as an energy company instead of focusing on the greater good of our community. The Public Utilities Commission must hold Idaho Power accountable and consider the opinions of the community.”
Nicholas Thomas, Youth Activist
“When we look at the long term effects, unaffordable solar will make it much harder for us to fight the climate crisis. This will lead to even more preventable deaths and diseases, and will directly affect our families. None of us deserve to lose a family member - especially to something preventable. This case is not only about climate justice, it’s about keeping our loved ones safe.”
Molly O’Sullivan, Youth Activist
“Decreasing the benefits of solar will disincentivize local solar panel owners and prospective owners from making the environmentally conscious, ethical choice to go solar. Change, after all, begins on an individual level, but it must be enabled by those in power. For the sake of my future, for the future of a healthy community, we NEED accessible solar.”
Kylie Jackson, Youth Activist
“Idaho Power claims to care about clean energy and the environment. So why are they making it more expensive and inaccessible? The profit they are chasing now isn’t worth its effect on the planet and therefore us. As members of the PUC it is your job to keep electricity affordable and regulate the monopolies in our state. When you make your decision, please think about the people and planet, not the company.”
Sherlyn Mesillas, Youth Activist
“By excluding these benefits, the total export credit rate according to Idaho Power is 2.3-4 cents per kilowatt. However, a study conducted by Crossborder Energy yields 18.3 cents per kilowatt–a significant increase. What this tells the community of Idaho is that Idaho Power prioritizes its profit over people. ”
Mayisa Rahman, Youth Activist
“Rather than holding true to the commitment they made to provide us Idahoans a future of clean, accessible energy, they care more about profiting off our climate’s decay. I hope that my testimony, along with the many others, will hold Idaho Power’s study accountable, and push them to rethink, and reach the goal they promised us years ago: a future, with clean energy.”
Jenna Welle, Youth Activist
“The PUC should not blindly accept Idaho Power’s heavily biased, inaccurate solar study which undervalues the energy produced by privately developed energy solutions. The PUC’s lack of oversight will lead to higher energy costs and fewer power alternatives for taxpayers. Please stand with me and the community and reject this study and require greater transparency and accuracy from Idaho Power.”
Find this Press Release on National Sierra Club's website here.