By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Impartial Information
The Bowling Inexperienced Metropolis Council cut up 4-3 final week over an ordinance that would supply rebates to owners with rooftop photo voltaic techniques tied to town’s electrical grid.
Voting for the proposal had been Invoice Herald, who launched the regulation, Jeff Dennis and Rachel Phipps. Voting in opposition to it had been Council President Mark Hollenbaugh, Joel O’Dorisio, Greg Robinette and Nick Rubando.
Opponents sided with town administration, saying the ordinance would weaken town’s Board of Public Utilities.
The rooftop photo voltaic difficulty grew to become a flashpoint in 2021 when the Board of Public Utilities started charging a payment for owners with rooftop photo voltaic tied to the grid.
Metropolis officers known as it an affordable “payment” whereas rooftop photo voltaic customers mentioned it was an unfair “wonderful.”
Herald insisted that whereas the impetus for the ordinance was the rooftop photo voltaic payment set by the board of public utilities, the rebates weren’t adverse to the board.
The payment discourages residents from putting in rooftop photo voltaic panels, based on some who’ve techniques in place. They are saying Bowling Inexperienced’s “inexperienced” picture is tarnished by the rooftop photo voltaic coverage.
However Brian O’Connell, town’s director of public utilities, mentioned the payment is important to make sure that different metropolis electrical energy clients don’t pay those that select to put in rooftop photo voltaic panels.
Metropolis electrical energy charges are primarily based on clients buying their vitality from town. A small portion of the fees are primarily based on fastened electrical system prices for gadgets resembling meters, poles, wires, transformers, switches and linemen – gadgets required for all properties together with these with rooftops. photo voltaic, O’Connell mentioned.
“These fastened prices do not change simply because somebody decides to place rooftop photo voltaic on their home,” he mentioned.
Town pays the rooftop photo voltaic system for the additional vitality they produce and ship to town’s grid to share with different customers. However with out that payment charged to properties with their very own solar energy, “some clients are subsidizing their vitality gross sales,” O’Connell mentioned.
In an effort to encourage rooftop photo voltaic, Herald instructed providing a rebate for residents. A rebate system might encourage the usage of renewable vitality and handle the considerations of the Board of Public Utilities about honest electrical energy prices for all clients, based on the Herald.
The ordinance doesn’t present for a payment for the services, Herald identified.
“It is the precise reverse,” he mentioned.
Underneath the proposed “Residential Renewable Useful resource” ordinance, Bowling Inexperienced residents who set up rooftop photo voltaic techniques on their properties and tie them into town’s grid can be eligible for a one-time cost of $1,000 from town.
The purpose is to encourage and help the preliminary set up of rooftop photo voltaic techniques and different inexperienced vitality era. The ordinance states that the municipal electrical grid will profit from electrical supply range with widespread citizen adoption of accepted renewable sources.
“This is sort of a pilot program. Let’s begin and see what occurs,” mentioned Herald.
However Mayor Mike Aspacher mentioned the laws would violate the autonomy of the Board of Public Utilities.
In a letter to the Metropolis Council, town administration mentioned the laws seems to be an try and reject the rooftop photo voltaic coverage put in place by the BPU.
“That coverage, and related nominal cost to affected clients, was put in place as a approach to cowl the price of electrical energy infrastructure service, and as a approach to eradicate subsidizing ratepayers. to clients who select to put in their very own energy era system,” the letter mentioned.
“If adopted, this laws will weaken the authority of the BPU. The BPU was established as an unbiased and non-political entity, put in place to take away politics from our utilities,” the letter continued.
The supply of the rebate funding can be a sticking level. It might come from town’s revenue tax, and pay residents for the alternatives they make – elevating questions in regards to the equity of town’s electrical energy clients. Or the rebate funds might come from utility accounts, which is an overstep by the Metropolis Council, mentioned the mayor.
“This undermines the authority of the Board of Public Utilities,” Aspacher mentioned.
Council member Jeff Dennis sees the regulation in another way.
“I have never talked to anybody but who does not assist encouraging renewable vitality,” Dennis mentioned.
He pushed the administration’s place that the Metropolis Council has no skill to make that coverage. He additionally questioned the argument that this regulation undermines the board of public utilities.
“I do not see this regulation doing that,” Dennis mentioned. “As a substitute, I feel that is an instance of a council member responding to constituent considerations and making an attempt to create a brand new program that encourages habits that all of us appear to agree is fascinating.”
Rubando mentioned that town council ought to work with the administration to seek out one other approach to improve the range of its grid.
“I respect what you probably did,” mentioned Rubando to Herald. “I feel we must always take heed to the phrases of the administration.”
Hollenbaugh questioned the usage of taxpayer cash for the rebates.
“There’s some discuss of revenue disparity,” he mentioned, including that the rebates will give tax {dollars} to residents who can spend money on solar energy.
O’Connell has repeatedly emphasised that Bowling Inexperienced is dedicated to photo voltaic vitality – evidenced by the biggest municipally owned photo voltaic discipline within the state, situated east of town.
“We aren’t in opposition to renewable vitality,” he mentioned. “However there’s additionally a monetary obligation to ensure the system is stored intact.”
Town is blissful to credit score rooftop photo voltaic owners for the additional vitality they produce throughout peak instances, he mentioned. “We realized there was worth for that.”
If residents with rooftop photo voltaic do not pay the payment, “different clients should make up the distinction,” O’Connell mentioned. “Our job is to find out what’s honest to pay for all sorts of shoppers.”
“Our job is to not encourage,” he mentioned. “Our job is to ensure each buyer is handled pretty.”
Town of Bowling Inexperienced boasts the second highest use of inexperienced vitality of any municipality in Ohio. Of the 40% renewable vitality used to energy town, 34% comes from hydro, 5% from photo voltaic, and 1% from wind.
“We’re not likely making an attempt to create a disincentive,” the mayor mentioned. “We respect these owners. However his job is to handle a municipal electrical system that gives dependable, secure, electrical energy for all of our clients,” he mentioned of O’Connell.
“Our job is to get well these prices,” O’Connell mentioned.
