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Rooftop solar’s popularity in Nevada is growing because it’s a reliable way for families to reduce utility costs while taking their energy production into their own hands. Unfortunately, our access to increased energy independence may soon be at a standstill if Nevada legislators and Gov. Brian Sandoval don’t increase or eliminate a cap that restricts how many customers can go solar.
(Editor’s note: Nevada senators passed a measure Sunday that will give the Public Utilities Commission authority to impose new fees on rooftop solar customers but no power to lift the cap blocking people from participating in a solar program. SB374 is a construction bill with an amendment regarding the solar issue. It now goes to the Assembly.)
Nevada likely will reach the 3 percent limit by fall, which means families, including mine, that want to take advantage of the many benefits of rooftop solar won’t be able to.
After 34 years of teaching, I am beginning to plan for my retirement. My life has been lived on my own terms, independent and self-sufficient. I’ve climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, taught in schools from the Philippines and Tanzania to inner-city schools in the U.S., and raised a son I adopted from Russia. I look forward to a retirement that is much the same — free and independent.
I’ll be retiring on a fixed income, like many in my generation. I’ll need to manage my budget carefully. Like many of my neighbors, I plan to invest in a rooftop solar energy system for my home so I can generate my own electricity and save on utility bills. I like the security of knowing my tight budget won’t be affected by utility rate hikes, and the savings will help me maintain my financial independence and fund my retirement adventures. But unless the cap on rooftop solar is lifted by the state, I won’t be free to follow through on my plans.
Only a portion of Nevada customers can go solar because of the utility’s concern over what this booming industry will do to last its bottom line. The more customers that go solar, the more it will cut into NV Energy’s profits. It would tell you it’s just looking out for other customers and that solar homes increase costs for everyone else.
But the study our Public Utilities Commission conducted shows that rooftop solar does not increase energy prices for others and actually has benefits for nonsolar homes.
Rooftop solar makes the electric grid more reliable on days when energy demand is high, reducing the chance of blackouts. Unfortunately, NV Energy seems to want to stick its head in the sand and cling to an outdated business model rather than adapt to 21st-century technologies and customers who want the freedom to produce their own clean power.
Reducing utility bills by being more energy independent is reason enough to go solar. But rooftop solar also supports an industry that cuts climate pollution, saves billions of gallons of water a year and employs thousands of people in Nevada. Our state was hit hard by the recession, and the solar industry — which now employs 6,000 people — has played an integral part in diversifying our economy.
As our historic drought continues into its fourth year, we need to move away from water-guzzling power plants. All solar needs is the sun to run, and the Silver State has plenty of that.
Late in my career, I switched from teaching music to teaching English to teaching computer skills. If I can adapt my career to changing times and the needs of my students, surely NV Energy can adapt to its customers’ changing needs.
As a teacher, I would never limit my students’ potential by refusing to change, and our public officials shouldn’t limit their constituents’ potential either.
Please join me in asking our legislators and Gov. Sandoval to lift the cap on solar and give every Nevadan the freedom to seek energy independence.
Maggie Mooha is a teacher in the Clark County School District and Las Vegas resident.
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