Like many people in our neighborhood, I look for ways to reduce my carbon footprint and help slow the onset of global warming. I’ve always felt that relying on solar power is a great way to do that and was excited to learn about a new initiative called the Oregon Community Solar Program (oregoncsp.org), which allows utility customers to subscribe to a solar project and receive credits on their electric bills. The program is the result of Senate Bill 1547 (Clean Electricity and Coal Transition bill), passed by Oregon legislators in March 2016. The bill directed the Oregon Public Utility Commission to establish a Community Solar Program for Oregon customers of Pacific Power, Portland General Electric, and Idaho Power.
How does it work? First, a project manager develops a community solar project that can be located on large building rooftops or placed as free-standing solar arrays in undeveloped areas. Utility customers can then subscribe to the project through the project manager. When the project starts generating electricity, they will receive credits on their utility bills for their portion of the electricity generated.
Subscribers must sign a contract detailing the benefits and costs for their expected electricity usage, which typically results in a 5 percent net savings on their electric bill. Eligible low-income subscribers can expect 20 percent net savings. There are no up-front costs to subscribe, and the savings are credited through your monthly electric bill. Contract terms vary among project managers. Oregon Shines (oregonshines.com), a subscriber management firm that handles the subscription process for several project managers, offers terms of 20 years, but they can be terminated, adjusted, or transferred to another party for no fee with a 30-day notice.
Any customer of Pacific Power, Portland General Electric, or Idaho Power can subscribe. It doesn’t matter if you own or rent, or what kind of home or apartment you live in. You can participate if you are a resident, business, nonprofit, or government entity, as long as you have an account with one of these utilities. You can only subscribe to a project associated with your utility (Pacific Power in my case). You can subscribe now for PGE projects. Pacific Power projects are coming on line in the next year. I signed up to be on a waitlist for a future project through Oregon Shines.