Net Energy Metering (NEM, also known simply as net metering) is the single most important policy enabling every Iowa home, farm, business, and institution to own solar on fair terms.
House File 669 and Senate File 583 are bills introduced in the 2019 Iowa Legislature to overturn this critical policy, after, in 2017 the Iowa Utilities Board (IUB) upheld net metering as a fair shake for ALL Iowans and utilities.
We encourage everyone to contact your legislator and ask for a clear statement in opposition to these anti-net metering bills. The Iowa Legislature page is here, and our page for northeast Iowa legislators is here.
Utilize our set of 15 talking points to develop your own message, or use our template letter. Learn more about the local solar energy prosperity opportunity in our article in the March 2019 issue of the Iowa Association of Counties magazine (pp20-21).
This legislation is a blatant attempt by MidAmerican Energy and Alliant Energy to monopolize the sun, place a “sunshine tax” on Iowan’s that attempt to own their energy production, and stomp out the steadily growing and truly massive “energy prosperity” opportunity of job and wealth creation for every Iowa community and county. Wealth retained by Iowa farmers, businesses, homeowners, institutions, communities, and counties is lost wealth for monopoly utilities, their executives, and out-of-state investors, plain and simple.
Learn more about the net metering, and this legislation:
The Iowa Environmental Council’s fact sheet page includes a wealth of information. Scroll down to “solar fact sheets” on that page, and most relevant items are the Sunshine Tax Talking Points and the Solar Energy Fact Sheet.
ALERT: There appears to be a dark money social media campaign designed to create animosity between solar and non-solar owners, to rile us up like a herd of cattle, and to divide Iowans against each other. It is called the REAL Coalition. DON’T BE FOOLED. Non-solar owners are NOT paying for solar owner costs. We bust these myths in the links provided below. If this tactic makes you mad, DO SOMETHING: contact your legislators, ensure everyone you know does the same, defeat these bills, and show the utilities we stand united for locally-owned solar energy jobs, prosperity, and stewardship!