Solar amendment backers say they’ll need $8-$10 million to fight utilities

A leading supporter of a proposed solar energy amendment said Wednesday that backers will need $8 million to $10 million to fight utilities to get the measure passed.

Floridians For Solar Choice Inc., a political committee created in December, announced its proposed amendment in 2016 that limits or prevents government and utilities from imposing barriers to supplying solar electricity. The committee reported $200 in contributions during its first reporting period ending Dec. 31.

Supporters must collect 68,314 signatures to get the measure reviewed by the Attorney General and Florida Supreme Court. If approved, the measure would need 683,149 signatures to get on the ballot, according to the state Division of Elections.

A coalition of groups including the Florida Retail Federation, the Libertarian Party of Florida and Conservatives for Energy Freedom are backing the measure. Supporters said the amendment would not be needed if utilities had not blocked legislation in recent years.

“We expect significant opposition — financial opposition — from the monopoly utilities,” said Stephen A. Smith, executive director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. “And that in itself is a statement, and it’s a sad statement of the state of affairs in the state of Florida — in the Sunshine State.”

Representatives of Florida Power & Light Co. and Duke Energy Florida declined to comment on the amendment.

“We are committed to energy policies where solar options are fair and beneficial to all of our customers,” Duke Energy spokesman Sterling Ivey said.

But a representative of municipal utilities in Florida said he’s concerned that the proposal could threaten the reliability of the electric system.

Supporters said they expect the amendment would encourage businesses such as Wal-Mart and Publix to contract with companies that would install solar panels on their stores and then buy the power from them. They said the amendment would prohibit barriers that include local government regulations or utilities that charge a special rates, tariffs or service restrictions on those who are buying solar energy.

Tory Perfetti, chairman of the Floridians for Solar Choice, said supporters “potentially” could withdraw the amendment if the Legislature passed a bill to prohibit barriers. But he said there is no reason to expect the Legislature would take action when it hasn’t in the past.

In 2012 and 2013, bills were filed in the Legislature that would exempt a landowner or other “third-party provider” of electricity from being regulated as a utility. But those bills died without being heard by committees.

Third-party provider legislation wasn’t filed in 2014. But a proposal by Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam to extend from residential to commercial property a tax exemption for renewable energy devices died in the House after a key committee chairman said he was opposed.

“Year after year clean energy advocates have tired to move energy efficiency and renewable energy with next to no success,” said Susan Glickman, Florida director of the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy.

The proposed amendment also would apply to municipal utilities such as those in Jacksonville and Orlando as well as the investor-owned utilities like FPL. Municipal utilities serve 3 million people in Florida.

Barry Moline, executive director of the Florida Municipal Electric Association, said those utilities fear the amendment could affect electric system reliability or force customers other than those receiving the solar power to pay for maintaining the electric grid. He said his municipal utilities would seek to inform their customers about the amendment and would not be likely to spend money opposing it.

“Our approach is not to say, ‘Hell no,’” he said. “It’s to say, ‘There is a way to do this.’ We didn’t write this thing. The way it looks (to us) is it would be worse for the state.”