Kansans Who Support More Solar Energy Should Speak Up Now

From the Kansas Reflector:

By
Dorothy Barnett - November 5, 2020

The Kansas Reflector welcomes opinion pieces from writers who share our goal of widening the conversation about how public policies affect the day-to-day lives of people throughout our state. Dorothy Barnett is executive director of the Climate + Energy Project.

As changes in technology make more affordable, reliable energy options possible, many Kansas families are considering investments in solar panels for their homes and small businesses.

Generally, those who are considering an investment in self-generated electricity find that solar panels are a reasonable choice for ensuring more consistent lower bills, while providing the added benefit of powering their property with a clean, renewable energy source.

But Kansans’ ability to choose this option is increasingly in jeopardy. The advantages of solar investments have been thwarted by many utility companies across the state, most specifically Evergy, the state’s largest utility provider. To understand what’s happening today, it’s important to know the history of solar in Kansas.

Before 2013, Kansans in the Evergy service territory with solar panels on their homes were offered a fair exchange for the energy they used and generated. At the end of the year, they’d settle up with the utility company. Evergy bought back, at the retail rate, any energy over-produced by the homeowner. If homeowners didn’t generate enough energy through their solar installation, they paid Evergy the same rate for that power.

But Evergy began to fear this structure would hurt its business model. The term for buying/selling back power generated by solar is called net-metering, and in 2014 Evergy convinced the Legislature to change net-metering policies. The size of solar installations was limited, the annual pay-ups were reduced to monthly, and the amount of energy permitted to net-meter was restricted to 1% of the utility’s energy demand.

Solar advocates were forced to accept this policy because the alternative was eliminating net-metering all together.

After the net-metering changes were adopted, solar industry advocates, our organization included, met with Kansas Corporation Commission staff to champion a cost/benefit study to fairly value the costs and the benefits of solar.

We argued that until Kansas reached the 1% cap, no restrictions should be placed on solar. The industry should be allowed to reach 1% without bureaucratic red tape or punitive rates.

But that’s not what happened. The KCC didn’t act on a cost/benefit study. Instead, they permitted the utilities to impose an even more regressive rate structure on solar users. This time, it was in the form of a demand charge.

The demand charge has since been deemed unconstitutional, though customers are still mandated to pay it. What Evergy is offering in its place is a grid access fee, which poses the same elements of discriminatory ratemaking the Supreme Court ruled against. If they don’t get this fee, they want a minimum bill for all residential ratepayers, regardless of how their electricity is generated.

Evergy says it needs each customer to pay a minimum bill of $77 per month. Currently, the company is settling for a $35 minimum bill.

The KCC must now decide to either accept a discriminatory grid access fee on solar users, let Evergy charge all residential customers a $35 minimum bill — or chart a new path, one that will provide homegrown clean energy. They will hear the legal arguments from experts on both sides of the issue Dec. 16-17 (the Climate + Energy project is one of the parties in this lawsuit).

But they also need to hear from you at a virtual public hearing on Nov. 5. If you can’t attend, the KCC will accept your written comments by mail (KCC Office of Public Affairs, 1500 SW Arrowhead, Topeka, KS 66604), by email, by phone (800-662-0027 or 785-271-3140) or online until Dec. 21 at 5 p.m.

With each change to the rate structure, we’ve seen further decline in solar investments among residential property owners. At the end of 2019, there were fewer than 1,200 net-metered solar arrays in Evergy’s territory. We’re still roughly 6,000 households away from achieving even 1% of our energy generation from rooftop solar.

Kansans, regardless of your interest in solar energy, we need you to speak out about this irresponsible ratemaking. Evergy has consistently raised rates over the last decade while working hard at the KCC and the Legislature to limit consumer choice.

Solar is more affordable and accessible than ever, but not if Evergy continues to get rate concessions that increase the cost of generating your own power.

Without a state energy plan, we don’t yet know the full potential of solar for the Kansas economy and we certainly aren’t discussing what our energy future looks like in a changing climate.

At the Climate + Energy Project, we want to ensure rooftop solar is viable. We have big ideas for how solar power can help fuel a post-COVID economic recovery, provide affordable power options to low-income communities and provide a clean, renewable source of energy that won’t accelerate a warming climate.

If you value the right to install solar, share those thoughts with the KCC.

Through its opinion section, the Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.

The Kansas Reflector seeks to increase people's awareness of how decisions made by elected representatives and other public servants affect our day-to-day lives. We hope to empower and inspire greater participation in democracy throughout Kansas.