Vocal opposition to a California bill canceling rooftop solar contracts for people who sell their homes resulted in major amendments to the proposal last week. The changes effectively neutralize the legislation’s negative impacts on solar panel owners.

Assemblymember Lisa Calderon (D-Whitter), a former executive for Edison International, agreed to changes to Assembly Bill 942 after solar owners, environmental groups, and the solar industry voiced strong opposition to the bill.

The Senate Committee on Energy, Utilities, and Communications on Friday published its analysis suggesting the amendments. The bill is expected to be officially amended soon. The bill now only ends a climate credit for solar customers whose power bill is less than $300 a month.

Dave Rosenfeld, executive director of the Solar Rights Alliance — a nonprofit association of solar customers — told GV Wire that the amended version no longer targets panel owners.

He said the previous version could have cost homeowners with solar tens of thousands of dollars when they sell their homes. When the bill passed the Assembly in June, he said lawmakers approved it in the belief that it wouldn’t break existing contracts.

Related Story: Buying a Home With Solar? Beware of CA Bill Written by Former Utility Co. Exec

“That speaks to the power of the utilities to just distort and warp and bend both the truth and the facts to their liking,” Rosenfeld said. “And a lot of the politicians just completely caved over in the Assembly.”

He said active opposition convinced lawmakers to make the changes.

“You had just tens of thousands of consumers lighting up the phone lines of their legislators,” Rosenfeld said. “I can’t underscore enough just how much this was really an example of ‘the people stood up to the special interests.’ ”

Environmental Groups Say California Needs to Support Solar

Calderon’s bill would have greatly reduced the solar payment rates for homeowners when a home sells, regardless of how many years remain on the Net Energy Metering contract. She said those subsidies come at the cost of people without solar.

“It was never my intent to target anybody. The whole intent to this bill is to find some equity and help lower bills for Californians, specifically the 10 million that are subsidizing 2 million,” Calderon said during the Tuesday Senate committee hearing.

But committee chair Josh Becker, D-Menlo Park, said people bought solar panels with the understanding they would get reimbursed at a certain rate. Reimbursement rates can determine how long it takes to pay off solar panels.

“The people signed up for this under the rules we had at the time,” Becker said during the meeting.

Many homeowners and groups including the California Association of Realtors, the Sierra Club, and the Environmental Working Group removed their opposition.

“At a time when Washington is moving backwards on energy, California must remain a beacon of hope and lead the way to a brighter future powered by clean, renewable energy,” said Bernadette Del Chiaro, EWG’s senior vice president in a statement.

Utility Groups: NEM a Problem Lawmakers Must Solve

Labor groups and utility companies supported AB 942 in its original form.

A representative with the California State Association of Electrical Workers said lawmakers will eventually have to deal with solar subsidies. Analysis from the group says that by reducing the “inequitable cost shift under NEM,” the Legislature can save $1.3 billion in utility bills for people without solar in 2026.

“This Legislature is going to have to get its arms around the cost shift that is NEM,” the representative said. “80% of ratepayers are subsidizing 20%.”

A report from the solar industry argues that by reducing peak electricity demand and the need for more electric grid infrastructure, solar customers provided a net benefit of $1.5 billion to all ratepayers in 2024.

“The lies about rooftop solar remain, not in the bill, but just kind of out there in the ether,” Rosenfeld said. “It’s going to be really important going forward for lawmakers to get themselves educated about why that’s a lie and how rooftop solar is actually one of your best weapons to lower the cost of electricity prices for all ratepayers.”