In the Sunshine State, we get an average of 32 more days of sunlight out of the year, compared to the national average, and our sunlight is more intense than most other states.
As we transition to a cleaner energy mix, solar makes sense in Florida, especially as it has rapidly become more affordable. That’s why Gov. Ron DeSantis’ decision to veto the net metering bill, despite Republican support for it, was the right thing to do.
Net metering refers to the ability of consumers to sell the electricity they don’t use back into the electric grid at the market price. When the sun is particularly strong and long-lasting, as it is in most of Florida, it produces more electricity than customers demand at that time.
When solar customers generate more electricity than they can use or store, net-metering gives them the option to sell it back to the larger grid. This, in turn, increases energy efficiency, makes the grid cleaner and more reliable, and provides an extra incentive for adopting clean energy. Allowing net metering should be a no-brainer. This is why 84% of Floridians support it.
The aforementioned bill would have phased out net metering over the next eight years in Florida. Proponents argued that net metering is effectively a subsidy for rooftop solar adopters paid by non-solar Floridian households, but they haven’t provided anything substantial to back it up.
Still, the bill passed through the state legislature with bipartisan support. Fortunately, DeSantis made the tough decision to go against his party when he vetoed the bill.
As a conservative, DeSantis should be in favor of the current net metering arrangement, which is directly tied to market prices.
Net metering is an innovation that free-marketeers should champion because it utilizes markets to monetize electricity that normally would go to waste, thus increasing the economic and environmental efficiency of the grid. Florida’s politicians rightfully tout the freedoms it offers and allowing residents the ability to capitalize on the natural gift of sunlight is the ultimate freedom.
Outside of claims by the public utility companies behind this effort, there is little evidence that net metering actually imposes any significant costs on non-solar customers, a fact DeSantis mentioned in his veto letter. His short-term concern is that this would put a further economic strain on Floridians while they’re experiencing soaring inflation.
According to a 2021 report from Conservatives for Clean Energy Florida, the rooftop solar industry supports 40,462 jobs and contributes $18.3 billion to the state’s economy on an annual basis. According to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), Florida is ranked third in the nation in solar energy capacity, only behind California and Texas.
Florida’s solar industry is thriving, but it needs to continue growing rapidly if our country is going to meet decarbonization goals. Due to our location, size, and population, Florida should be incentivizing solar, especially through market-based programs like net metering. Governor DeSantis embraced clean energy innovation over partisanship, and Florida will be better off for it.
Logan Luse is the Florida State Director at the American Conservation Coalition Action (ACC Action). He lives in Melbourne.
Read the original here.