Q&A: Washington Gov. Jay Inslee Aims For 100% Clean Electricity By 2045

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

Washington Governor Jay Inslee announced his aggressive plans to reduce the state’s carbon emissions. As part of those plans, he has pledged the state to get to 100% clean energy by 2045, following California and several other states who have decided to decarbonize tehir electrical systems. He talked with SolarWakeup about the decision.

SolarWakeup: Where does Washington currently stand in its clean energy development?

Washington Governor Jay Inslee: Washington’s electricity is about 75% carbon free, predominantly hydro. You can find more information here and here.

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SolarWakeup: What first inspired you to decide to set 2045 as a 100% clean electricity date?

Jay Inslee: This timeline sets a reasonable glide path for depreciating long-lived infrastructure and allows for innovation to continue to make clean energy more affordable. Utilities conduct resource planning over 20-year horizons, so we believe this timeline gives them plenty of time to plan ahead. It is also consistent with timelines already adopted by Hawaii and California.

SolarWakeup: How is Washington going to get there?

Jay Inslee: That will be determined through thoughtful implementation of the policy by individual utilities. We expect renewables, energy efficiency, energy storage, demand response, and further regional grid integration to all play a role.

SolarWakeup: What percentage would you say will be solar?

Jay Inslee: Because electricity system planning is conducted on a utility-by-utility basis, we do not have an estimate for how much solar will be developed.

SolarWakeup: Do you have any concerns about the aggressiveness of your goal?

Jay Inslee: No. Many utilities will reach the standard before 2045.

SolarWakeup: Do you have the backing in the legislature to make your goal a reality?

Jay Inslee: Yes. We have support in both the House and the Senate and the bill is a 2019 legislative priority of the environmental priorities coalition.

SolarWakeup: What else would you like the rest of the country to know about Washington’s commitment to 100% clean electricity?

Jay Inslee: Because of our legacy of clean, renewable hydroelectricity, and history of leadership in energy efficiency, Washington is uniquely positioned to meet this standard. We are also at a critical juncture to replace legacy coal power plants in the region, and we believe most of the transformation will happen by 2030.

Washington Is About To Run Out Of Solar Incentives (So Snap Them Up Quick)

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

Once the money is gone, it really is gone. That’s the news out of Washington state care of the Tri-City Herald, where an article warns potential solar consumers that they must get their applications in now if they want the full solar incentives available to them.

As the article notes:

Some home or business owners in Richland planning to install solar panels likely are facing a drop in rates in the city program that buys electricity from small solar systems.

And now a state tax incentive program is expected to run out of money soon, likely shutting many homeowners and businesses that plan to install solar out of getting the benefit.

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The problem here is apparently twofold. First, the compensation structure is set to drop significantly at the end of the year. Secondly, the pool of state money set aside to encourage solar installations – originally set by the legislature at $110 million – is a hard cap, meaning there is no more money available to potential solar consumers once the money runs out.

Time is running short for potential solar consumers to apply for all of the incentives available to them. They must get their application into Washington state before February 14, 2019, but the catch is that the system must be up and running two weeks before that to qualify for full net metering and whatever money is left in the state coffers to subsidize the installation.

After that, installations will be put on a wait list to see if there is any money left over in the state fund. If not, then those solar consumers will find themselves out of luck.

The article also notes that there’s an outside chance the Washington legislature could add more money into the fund, but one advocate warns that it took four years for the original bill to pass in 2017, so solar consumers shouldn’t count on the legislature being any more timely this time around

Washington Unveils Community Solar Rules Despite Concerns From Advocates

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent

Community solar is taking the United States by storm, and it’s increasingly being used by states to provide access to solar to non-traditional solar constituencies like low-income and communities of color. And as Utility Dive reported this week, Washington is the latest state to announce the rules it will use to govern these projects.

To say they are a bit byzantine is an understatement, and solar advocates in the state told Utility Dive that they’re afraid the new regulations will have the opposite effect than the one intended.

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…the regulation comes from a place of concern over consumer protections and against for-profit entities entering the market and “overpromising the benefits of community solar to potential customers,” [Jaimes Valdez, policy manager at Spark NW] said.

However, “especially the housing agencies that are trying to develop community solar are overly burdened by incentives intended to apply to larger companies that are more sophisticated,” he added. “We hope there can be a longer term view of what community solar means outside of this incentive program and ways for people to actively participate in a renewable energy future … including communities of color that haven’t traditionally been able to access that solar.”

One of the problems is that the state incentive for community solar is capped at $110 million by statute, and the number of project currently in the queue have put it close to hitting its cap.

As advocates told Utility Dive,

Spark NW, along with NW Energy Coalition and Solar Installers of Washington, fears that the new regulations may prevent smaller entities, such as affordable housing groups or nonprofits, from clearing the layers of red tape needed to apply.

While Washington’s heart may be in the right place in trying to protect consumers, making community solar more difficult to access – and limiting the entities that can do it to large companies and/or utilities – defeats the democratizing (small ‘d’) effects community solar is trying to achieve. It’s time for the legislature to go back to the drawing board and rethink its approach to community solar so more people have the opportunity to participate in it.