Local officials call for raising solar project cap

During the Sept. 8 meeting of the Local Government Advisory Commission, municipal officials urged Gov. Charlie Baker to work with the Legislature to lift the “net metering” cap, which is limiting development of large solar projects.

State law requires utilities to purchase 5 percent of their power from renewable sources, but the law allows them to reject projects beyond this level, known as the “net-metering cap.”

National Grid, for example, is at 5 percent, so it is not accepting interconnection applications for additional large solar projects in its service area, which covers 171 communities. This means that single-phase systems above 10 kilowatts and three-phase systems above 25 kilowatts cannot be built, effectively eliminating any project larger than one for a single-family home.

The administration recently filed a bill to raise the net metering cap from 5 percent to 7 percent, and the Senate passed legislation that would eliminate the percentage cap and replace it with a cap of 1,600 megawatts, nearly double what it is now. Both bills would allow communities to take advantage of a 30 percent federal tax credit before it expires at the end of next year.

At the LGAC meeting, MMA Vice President Lisa Blackmer, a North Adams councillor, told the administration, “The legislation you filed shows you understand the needs of our communities, and we asked you now to work with Senate and House leaders to fast-track this legislation.”

Haverhill Mayor James Fiorentini, president of the Massachusetts Mayors’ Association, said, “We will continue to advocate for a 5-megawatt project on the city’s landfill. The project is currently stalled, however, because of the net metering cap.

“The solar project would have a $12 million long-term financial benefit for the city, and if the cap can be lifted quickly, this brownfield can be put to a productive use.”

Gov. Baker urged municipal officials to push forward with their solar projects even under current conditions, so they may take advantage of the federal solar tax credit.

After the meeting, the governor told State House News Service, “It’s important that we make sure communities, families, commercial developers, landlords, everybody here in Massachusetts who has the opportunity to pursue solar projects, pursues it while that tax credit is still available, because there’s a lot of debate about whether it will be reauthorized.”

The governor’s bill was scheduled for a hearing on Sept. 29 before the Joint Committee on Telecomunications, Utilities and Energy.