Law Allows New Yorkers to Sell More Green Power to Utilities

Net metering allows electricity customers with qualified renewable energy systems to sell excess electricity back to their local utility.

The bill will expand the state's net metering law and lead to greater investment by homeowners, farms and businesses in facilities that generate energy from renewable sources.

By increasing market demand for renewable technologies, the bill also will attract renewable energy manufacturers and installers to New York state, Paterson said.

"I want to thank the Legislature for making this enhanced energy law a reality. In addition to changing the state's dependency on traditional, fossil-fuel based energy sources this law will be a job creation vehicle, particularly in Upstate New York," said the governor.

"For instance, those businesses with large roof areas present enormous opportunities for hosting solar energy facilities. If those kinds of resources are fully realized, it could relieve significant stress from our already over-burdened utility grid and improve our energy independence."

Solar panels on the Wild Center-National History Museum of the Adirondacks in Tupper Lake, New York. (Photo Kathy Rose courtesy NREL)

Governor Paterson campaigned on a promise of an enhanced emphasis on alternative fuel sources in 2006. More recently he called for an expanded and enhanced net metering law in February of this year as one of 16 recommendations from the Renewable Energy Task Force he chaired when he was Lt. Governor Paterson before he was vaulted into the governorship by the resignation of former Governor Eliot Spitzer.

The legislation agreed today will expand net metering in three areas of renewable energy - solar, wind and farm waste.

The bill will expand the state's solar net metering program to apply to businesses, and increase the size of eligible solar photovoltaic systems to 25 kilowatts for residential customers and up to two megawatts or the customer's peak load for non-residential customers.

The law also will increase the maximum amount of electricity that the utility would be required to buy back through net metering. The Long Island Power Authority will be authorized to implement non-residential solar electric net metering.

The bill will also authorize net metering for wind technology for all utility customer classes, including non-residential classes. Previously, the law authorized such systems for residential and farm operations only.

The law will allow non-residential wind electric generators to net meter up to the lesser of their peak load or two megawatts, and increase the maximum size of wind facilities for farm operations from 125 kilowatts to 500 kilowatts. Caps on net-metering enrollment in utility service territories will be increased.

The size of a farm waste electric generation system that can be net metered will increase from 400 kilowatts to 500 kilowatts.

The Renewable Energy Task Force had identified New York's net metering law limitations as a barrier to broader use of distributed renewable energy generation.

Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno said, "Net metering can advance many sources of alternative energy in New York State, promote economic development and help us save energy. At a time where New York's families are struggling with rising energy costs, this is an opportunity to provide much-needed relief. I'd like to thank the governor and the Assembly for partnering with us on this legislation."

Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver said, "The expansion of net metering paves the way for greater independence and cost-savings for New York's energy consumers. This legislation will encourage residents, businesses, schools and non-profits to reduce costs by producing power through non-polluting alternative sources such as solar and wind technologies.

Copyright Environment News Service (ENS) 2008. All rights reserved.