Gov. Gavin Newsom’s California Public Utilities Commission appointees voted to slash financial incentives for rooftop solar power — for the second time. The Nov 16 5-0 vote by the CPUC will make solar panels less economically enticing for apartment dwellers, farmers, schools and strip malls, solar companies say. The commission said it altered the rates because paying solar panel owners near-retail prices allows these mostly wealthy property owners to avoid paying a fair share of maintaining the grid, while saddling everyone else with higher electric bills, including low-income customers. The commission approved similarly dramatic solar incentive cuts for single-family homes in December — a decision that the solar industry says has prompted a steep drop-off in sales. Read MORE.
