PG&E Tries to Smuggle Sneaky Solar Tax in California to "rob" Solar Energy Users

Photo: plien / Creative Commons

PG&E is trying to smuggle a sneaky solar tax in California to rob people using solar energy. While the owners bought their solar panels and are now supporting the state's power grid, they have been betrayed by their energy company seeking to collect hundreds of dollars in additional taxes from them.

The credibility of Californians, who seek renewable energy and to support the state has been vilely betrayed. @teslaownersSV/Twitter urgently reported that PG&E's Solar Tax was snuck into a bill that state lawmakers will vote on August 31. Residents of the state using energy from their own solar panels and batteries have less than 48 hours to stop this solar tax.

PG&E trying to be sneaky and getting us to pay for using the Sun. Please fill this out! @elonmusk https://t.co/IMHgRIhG3H

— Tesla Owners Silicon Valley (@teslaownersSV) August 30, 2022

The Solar Rights Alliance called on the people of the state to urgently claim their rights and take the following three actions right now:

1) Send a message to your state Assemblymember and Senator right away to stop PG&E’s Sneaky Solar Tax

Stop PG&E’s Sneaky Solar Tax

2) Call both your state Assemblymember and Senator to increase the impact of your message. Here’s a way to look up their number and a suggested calling message.

3) Forward this message as widely as you see fit. If you are on social media, please share this action page on platforms such as Nextdoor, Facebook or Twitter.

More information about tax

Tomorrow, August 31, state lawmakers will vote on a proposal – SB 846 – to keep PG&E’s Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant open for another ten years. To pay for it, ratepayers will be charged a new fee based on “gross” energy consumption. This includes the solar energy that powers your home during the day or charges your battery. (Section 9(l) of the bill)

In this case, obviously, it is not about the merits of nuclear power or keeping Diablo Canyon open. Solar plant owners do not buy electricity from utilities. In addition, they reduce the load on the power grid and help make it more stable and reliable. If or when Diablo Canyon is replaced, the right thing to do would be to encourage cleaner energy and energy storage, not discourage it.

The bill would tax all solar users, current and future, when their solar panels (or batteries) power things like:

• A fridge, air conditioner, wheelchair, or dialysis machine in a home
• An irrigation pump on a farm
• A science lab in a school
• A heart monitor in a hospital

The Solar Rights Alliance reported that “this sneaky Solar Tax in the California State Legislature is different from, but related to, the still-pending Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) rooftop solar proposal. If the legislature gives the green light to this Diablo Canyon Solar Tax, nothing will stop the CPUC from levying the 11 other types of Solar Taxes suggested by the CPUC in May that will add up to $300 to $600 per year for the average solar user. You will recall that thousands of people to took to the streets this summer in Los Angeles, San Francisco and seven other cities to protest this Solar Tax.”

It is reported that PG&E prepared the bill behind closed doors and deliberately disclosed it less than two days before the vote so that the people of the state did not have time to learn about it and take appropriate action. The Solar Rights Alliance explains that “the actual bill language was only made public this past Sunday evening, with just three days for the public and lawmakers to respond. The legislative session ends tomorrow night at midnight, so we have less than 48 hours to stop this Solar Tax.”

Please send a message to your state Assemblymember and Senator right away to stop PG&E’s Sneaky Solar Tax

© 2022, Eva Fox | Tesmanian. All rights reserved.

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Article edited by @SmokeyShorts; follow him on Twitter

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