SAN FRANCISCO – Legislation to keep California’s last nuclear power plant operating was quietly amended over the weekend to impose a monthly tax on residential solar customers for electricity they generate and use to power their homes. The state currently cannot legally impose these “behind the meter” charges on solar customers.
The legislation, Senate Bill 846, was first introduced at the behest of Gov. Gavin Newsom in order to approve a $1.4 billion loan by state taxpayers to keep the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant running. But on Sunday, the bill’s authors inserted new language that would add a “nonbypassable” charge to all ratepayers, including those who have installed rooftop solar to their homes and businesses.
Under the revised bill, which must be voted on by midnight on August 31, solar customers would be charged for electricity generation and distribution services they do not use when powering their homes. Instead, they would be forced to pay a fee on the solar power they themselves generate and use.
The amendment addresses nonbypassable charges to defray extra costs to keep Diablo Canyon operating that would not be covered by the loan. It states that this charge is assessed on gross electricity consumption and targets net-metered customers, regardless of the customer’s net-metering status.
This is clearly a backdoor attack on net metering by Pacific Gas & Electric.
The reviled utility and the other two big investor-owned power companies in the state, San Diego Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison, are trying to get the California Public Utilities Commission to adopt their proposal, which would do away with financial incentives available to working-class families and others in the state’s rooftop solar program. The utilities want to replace those incentives with a nonbypassable solar tax of up to $60 a month.
The effort by the power companies is meant to kneecap California’s successful rooftop solar program, which has helped more than 1.3 million families, small business owners, schools and faith-based groups finance the installation of solar panels and battery storage. It’s one of the most successful state-based policies to address the climate crisis, and the only competition the utilities face.
“In what world is it justified to impose a tax on residential solar customers for electricity they generate themselves?” said Ken Cook, president of EWG and Bay Area resident. “It’s a blatant, duplicitous attempt to use the ill-conceived proposal to keep Diablo Canyon operating to crush the distributed solar market in California – right when state leaders should be taking every measure possible to spur the expansion of clean, safe and real renewable sources of electricity.”
“Allowing Diablo to continue operating is beyond short-sighted. It will only delay the state’s greenhouse gas emissions reductions goals and continue putting Californians at risk should a disaster strike the plant,” he said.
Beyond the new solar tax on individuals who have installed solar panels plus storage on their homes and businesses, much of the $1.4 billion loan to PG&E would likely be forgivable, putting the financial burden to pay for it on the backs of both taxpayers and ratepayers.
“This billion dollar giveaway to PG&E will be only the beginning of a long and extremely expensive proposition to keep Diablo operating – and could very well result in a catastrophic accident,” said Cook.
Here’s why keeping Diablo Canyon operating is concerning:
- Cost – continued operations will be costly. From 2011 to 2017, maintenance costs increased $110 million dollars. Plus: The plant is known to harm aquatic life by discharging hot water directly into the Pacific Ocean. Upgrading the cooling system to address these concerns could cost billions of dollars.
- Safety – the plant is an extreme safety hazard. In 2014, a Nuclear Regulatory Commission inspector urged the NRC to shut the plant down due to earthquake hazard.
- Potential for disaster. One of the facility’s units is considered one of the most embrittled units in the country. If the plant were forced to suddenly shut down, cold water would be sent to the core, where the highly radioactive fuel resides. This would cause the containment vessel to shatter, in turn causing a catastrophic accident.
###
The Environmental Working Group is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization that empowers people to live healthier lives in a healthier environment. Through research, advocacy and unique education tools, EWG drives consumer choice and civic action.
