Iowa wants you to pay utilities even if you are totally off-grid and don't use grid power.

[bulrush]

No joke.

March 2019.

A bill to let Iowa utilities charge a new fee to customers who install solar panels is among the policy proposals that have cleared a procedural deadline in the legislature.

Senator Michael Breitbach, a Republican from Strawberry Point, said it’s fair for all customers to pay for the maintenance of utility infrastructure. “The average, everyday person can understand how the utilities have a cost for lines, poles and transformers,” Breitbach said during today’s Senate Committee Committee meeting. “The solar customer uses those features…to transmit the power out and get power back in when they’re not producing.”

Senator Joe Bolkcom, a Democrat from Iowa City, said the bill is a “power grab” by the state’s investor-owned utilities.

“Iowa’s largest utility monopoly is trying to pull the plug on Iowa’s growing solar industry by creating a new ‘sun tax,'” Bolkcom said. “The new sun tax will kill good jobs and make it virtually impossible for Iowa businesses, farmers (and) homeowners to continue to cost effectively invest in generating their own power.”


https://www.radioiowa.com/2019/03/0...or-iowa-solar-panel-owners-clears-committees/

Iowa solar power incentives: https://www.energysage.com/solar-panels/solar-rebates-incentives/ia/

 

[Steve_S]

That is what an Oilygarchy & Fascism looks like. Many states even refuse to allow Tesla Cars from being sold there.... Free Enterprise ? ONLY AS FAR AS THE FERENGI ARE CONCERNED ! If your offgrid and not connected they have no right to charge you to access that stupid grid.

 

[offgriddle]

That is what an Oilygarchy & Fascism looks like. Many states even refuse to allow Tesla Cars from being sold there.... Free Enterprise ? ONLY AS FAR AS THE FERENGI ARE CONCERNED ! If your offgrid and not connected they have no right to charge you to access that stupid grid.

Here here I agree, most gubment raised USamericans are so common core brain damaged, that they don't even know how to think about voting for any possible alternative to self enslavement. ~ Regarding the Ferengi types of free agency and enterprise, it's buyer beware for sure and a great many Ferengi types abound in these days of the Federal Reserve's ever shrinking trading commodity simply known as the "dollar". ~ Take heart, for unlike being forced to fund the establishment of the Ferengi type majority, (both elected and appointed), who operate the corporate monopoly of local, state and Federali Gubment, a free individual has the choice of wether or not to patronize any establishments of Free Enterprise that are operated by Ferengi types. Happy Halloween.?‍

 

[L-P-G]

If you have solar and are grid tied (essentially using the grid as your battery) then you should pay the fees, after all you're using the infrastructure.
If you're off the grid and store your own power, then no, you shouldn't have to pay fees for infrastructure you don't use.

There, was that soo hard?

 

[Steve_S]

Happy to be free in Canada... we got our issues but so much less it's easier to live free & independent of the shenanigans here.

 

[Rider]

If you have solar and are grid tied (essentially using the grid as your battery) then you should pay the fees, after all you're using the infrastructure.

But you shouldn't have to pay any more fees than a standard power user without solar panels. The power company benefits from your power, and you get a credit for it. Why negate the benefits with extra fees?

 

[offgriddle]

If you have solar and are grid tied (essentially using the grid as your battery) then you should pay the fees, after all you're using the infrastructure.
If you're off the grid and store your own power, then no, you shouldn't have to pay fees for infrastructure you don't use.

There, was that soo hard?

Agreed, but that's fairness & common sense and there's no monopoly money in that!

 

[offgriddle]

Happy to be free in Canada... we got our issues but so much less it's easier to live free & independent of the shenanigans here.

I hope to visit Canada one fine day, (will have to brush up on the language first), and I would love to see a show at that beautiful opera house in the capital of Sydney.

 

[L-P-G]

But you shouldn't have to pay any more fees than a standard power user without solar panels. The power company benefits from your power, and you get a credit for it. Why negate the benefits with extra fees?

Agreed, We actually lower their bottom line by producing power for them. The problem is their investment on large power plants is already made and now they don't get the revenue they used to get off our monthly bill so they're trying to get money a different way.

It should at least be equal solar or no solar.

 

[svetz]

Can you provide a reference? If it's a tax from the utility company and you're off-grid you won't get a utility bill so won't be paying the tax. The links in the OP seems to be about grid-tied solar, and IMHO it is fair for them to pay for the usage of the power lines too.

 

[morth]

There were some articles (think it was on EVTV) about how Colorado is playing games with grid tied systems. They force your inverter off line by messing with grid frequency. Many inverters take 15 minutes to reset, this forces you to use grid power, then charge you their minimum service fee.... Easy money.

 

[eddie1261]

I don't know if this forum software has censor software built in, so I will be gentle so you don't have to see see asterisks in any word in the post, I will just describe this as the stuff that falls out of the south end of a northbound bull. How dare they penalize people for option for green power that doesn't pollute through use of fossil fuel. This country is just going to stay in the dark ages as long as possible. How dare they tax the sun. With all the grief they gave us about emission control on our cars, now they want to discourage people from using an energy source that doesn't pollute like an internal combustion engine does.

 

[L-P-G]

I don't know if this forum software has censor software built in, so I will be gentle so you don't have to see see asterisks in any word in the post, I will just describe this as the stuff that falls out of the south end of a northbound bull. How dare they penalize people for option for green power that doesn't pollute through use of fossil fuel. This country is just going to stay in the dark ages as long as possible. How dare they tax the sun. With all the grief they gave us about emission control on our cars, now they want to discourage people from using an energy source that doesn't pollute like an internal combustion engine does.

That's what happens when "Corporations are people" they buy politicians to create legislation to line their pockets.

 

[Supervstech]

When government backs the monopoly power companies, government has a responsibility to ensure their investment continues to milk, I mean profit production. Otherwise the general population that does not have a grid tied system could have to pay more for their power... because the power company might have to roll blackouts to the population taking everybody down...

 

[offgriddle]

When government backs the monopoly power companies, government has a responsibility to ensure their investment continues to milk, I mean profit production. Otherwise the general population that does not have a grid tied system could have to pay more for their power... because the power company might have to roll blackouts to the population taking everybody down...

There is truth in what you say. The temptation for collusion between the utility provider and what is supposed to be a government watchdog, resulting from the large pool of money demanded of the mass ratepayers as collected by the government regulated utility monopoly, is real and ever present. I also understand that huge energy providers require huge amounts of money to operate and generate huge profits so even a small percentage of rate payers seeking relief from financial burden by generating their own energy are viewed as enemies of the state. Fear not, use your wits and resources as you choose and grow your own power. Peace.[/QUOTE]

 

[PatBlack]

I'll know more soon, but in my initial conversation with a grid-tie installer in my area, it seems the utility currently only allows a home grid-tie solar system to produce 50% of power usage based on a 12-month lookback period. Had I known, I would have used more power in the last year!

 

[efficientPV]

Grid tied people have gamed the system for a long time. You want to have grid power on your own schedule, you should pay for it. Most generating is not done by the power companies anymore. Industrial customers have paid for peak demand for a long time. Now with smart meters you can be billed a different rate every 15 minutes. Even grid only people are going to be paying the real cost of energy. Time to smarten up to the future and get involved in smart energy management.

 

[CheezWiz]

There's a reason most politicians at State and federal levels are very wealthy if not millionaires.

 

[macron0]

I think it is pretty fair to pay the utilities company something if you use them to store your energie for later use. If you have to buy and maintain enough batteries to store all the energie you need when the sun is down it costs you a lot of money. It is just a matter of how much you should pay.
If you're not on the grid at all it would be totally rediculous to pay for it.

 

[dougbert]

I found Jack Rickard on EVTV and Youtube and have found his insights great

He switches the model of things. Don't look at batteries as a "backup" to the grid, rather view the grid as the "backup" to your batteries. Live "Selfish Solar" and don't share yours with the grid. Just use the grid to charge the batteries if the sun is behind the clouds for too long

I have solar, but my interest is NOT trying to pay back the cost of building it. My primary use is as a UPS as well as daily loads being driven by solar and batteries, and will never connect in a grid-tie model using NetMetering. Thus I don't have to "register" my stuff with them