Policy Priorities

This short Minnesota Legislative session is underway and entertains several bills impacting the solar industry. Stay tuned in or inquire with us on how you can help effect positive change for the solar industry in 2018.      

MnSEIA is working to roll out a capacity credit during peak hours in Xcel Energy's Standby Service Tariff or in its PV rider for commercial and industrial solar systems over 40 Kilowatts. In addition, we will work to develop a proper long term methodology while the interim capacity credit is implemented, so our C&I solar members can utilize the capacity credit to grow their sector.

The Minnesota PUC devised a set of statewide Interconnection Standards in 2004, and recently reopened the matter to revise and update the standards with the FERC SGIP as a baseline. Technical Standards are also being revised in this process, and recommendations will likely be set by PUC in 2018. MnSEIA represents the industry in during these workshops.  

Only about 13% of Community Solar Gardens are residential-based, despite residential subscribers being a main category of subscribers originally intended to benefit from the program. Our work will center on developing a Community Solar Residential adder for Xcel’s Community Solar Garden program.

Our efforts include promoting a fair and accurate Value of Solar rate for Xcel Energy's Community Solar Garden subscribers that upholds values of transparency in the methodology used, enables efficient application processing, and provides business security for solar industry members who depend on fairness and stability to operate their businesses.  

Xcel Energy's Renewable*Connect program allows a customer to opt for a blend of solar and wind resources to meet average demand, on and off peak, in lieu of an installed system or community solar subscription. MnSEIA promotes transparency, fairness and effective application of the program, so its member businesses can play an active role in developing the solar resources necessary to meet customer demand.

On January 22, 2018, President Trump issued a remedy for serious harm alleged by two bankrupt solar cell and module manufacturers operating in the US, owing to low prices from the flood of Chinese solar cell and module imports to the US. MnSEIA is pushing back against these tariffs. 

In 2017, MnSEIA and its partner organizations prevailed at the PUC, which found that cooperative utility distributed generation "grid access fees" charged to small qualified facilities were illegal and not based on a cost of service study, as required by Minnesota law.