Solar workers rally in Connecticut to encourage lawmakers to keep net metering

Solar workers and advocates rallied at the State Capitol building this week, along with Representative Lonnie Reed, in defense of more than 2,000 solar jobs. The workers were rallying to encourage state lawmakers to fix Senate Bill 9, a purported clean energy bill which endangers the state’s current solar energy industry and its more than 2,000 jobs through the elimination of a popular policy known as net-metering, as well as by lowering the solar build cap. Only three weeks are left in the legislative session in which SB9 could be amended to avoid negative impacts on solar jobs.

Solar workers from over a dozen companies across the state filled the area in front of the Connecticut’s Capitol Building’s north entrance with signs reading “Save Solar Jobs,” and “Fix SB9.” The rally was organized jointly by Solar Connecticut and The Alliance for Solar Choice, with participation from at least a dozen national and local companies that install solar panels on Connecticut homes. Following speeches by several solar workers, as well as Representatives Lonnie Reed and David Carney, the workers stormed the capitol to demand face-to-face meetings with their lawmakers.

“Connecticut’s solar industry employs more than two-thousand workers, generates tens of millions of dollars in tax revenue to the state, and helps consumers reduce their energy bills in one of America’s highest energy costs states,” said Mike Trahan, executive director of SolarConnecticut. “Despite what Governor Malloy and officials at the Department of Energy say, there’s nothing wrong with the way solar gets done in Connecticut. What’s wrong is proposed legislation that’s heavily tilted toward preserving the status quo for Connecticut’s electric power companies.”

“Senate Bill 9 is a job killer. Connecticut should not go the way of Nevada or Maine, which ended net metering and lost thousands of jobs. To protect jobs and support clean energy, legislators should defend net metering and avoid any cap on solar investment,” Stephen Lassiter, spokesperson for The Alliance for Solar Choice said.

View a recording of the event here. 

News item from The Alliance for Solar Choice