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Energy Taskforce Discussing Ways Forward After Net Metering Debate

A state energy task force committee that’s meeting Tuesday is scheduled to review proposals on how to accommodate future customers beyond the 30,000 or so who might be eligible for grandfathering.

Those proposals could eventually become bills that would end up right where the solar controversy started flaring up last year — the Nevada Legislature.

Lawmakers last spring authorized the Nevada PUC to set new rates for rooftop solar customers because the state was approaching a cap on the number of net metering participants.

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The commission decided that solar rates should go up, saying the existing rates forced customers without solar panels to subsidize those with the panels.

The move prompted large solar companies to lay off many of their employees in Nevada and launch a high-profile campaign expressing their frustration.

But the publicity on the solar issue has put indirect pressure on state legislators, many of whom are encountering a more solar-savvy electorate as they knock on doors in their re-election bids.