The California Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee has amended Assembly Bill 942 (AB 942) and removed a net metering amendment that would have affected residential solar owners’ rates when acquiring a home or property.
In its previous iteration, AB 942, introduced by assembly member Lisa Calderon – a former utility executive – sought to have customers buying a property with an existing solar system to switch their net energy metering (NEM) tariff to the most current one instead of inheriting the one from the previous owner.
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Had this policy gone through, it would have exposed new owners to a significant decline in net metering payments, with export rates for selling electricity back to the grid slashed by nearly 75% between NEM3.0 and previous iterations. The bill will be amended to remove this policy as per the committee’s analysis available here.
“This decision is a tremendous victory for California families and businesses who invested in rooftop solar with the state guarantee that their net metering agreements would remain intact—even if they sell their homes,” said California Solar & Storage Association (CALSSA) executive director, Brad Heavner.
Back in May, when the bill passed the California State Assembly’s Appropriations Committee, AB 942 had already been amended from its original version, which had proposed sunsetting all legacy NEM contracts after ten years instead of 20.
CALSSA was among the more than 100 environmental, climate, clean energy, consumer, economic justice and affordable housing advocates, who last month signed a letter calling on California legislators to reject AB 942.
JD Dillon, chief marketing and customer experience officer at module-level power electronics supplier Tigo Energy: “We’re encouraged by the Senate Energy, Utilities and Commerce Committee’s decision to amend AB 942. The previously drafted version of the bill would have undermined consumer confidence, devalued home solar investments, and stalled progress toward California’s clean energy goals.
“The solar industry thrives when legislation supports innovation, consumer choice, and long-term resilience, not when it introduces unnecessary friction between emerging technologies and legacy power structures.”
This positive outcome for the solar residential industry in California comes at a time when, at the federal level, residential solar has been heavily affected by the reconciliation bill passed earlier this month.
Residential tax credits (Section 25D) are set to end by the end of this year, but residential solar projects will still be eligible to apply for investment tax credits and production tax credits.
