From Coalition for Community Solar Access: “American Legislative Exchange Council Votes Unanimously for Community Solar and Agrivoltaics Permitting for Farmers”

Shared from Coalition for Community Solar Access; the original source can be found here.

“The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), America’s largest membership organization of state legislators dedicated to the principles of free markets and federalism, passed ‘The Resolution in Support of Farming and Energy Production‘ unanimously last week during the States & Nation Policy Summit in Washington, D.C. Introduced by Colorado Republican Weld County Commissioner Lori Saine, the Resolution supports permitting community solar and agrivoltaic projects on farmland. The resolution will spur consumer choice and energy options that support family farms while also increasing domestic energy production like community solar. 

‘American farmers and ranchers deserve to have choices about how they produce energy on their farmlands,’ says Weld County Commissioner Lori Saine. ‘Small-scale community solar and agrivoltaics can play an important part in our national energy future, providing opportunities for farmers and keeping farmland in production. We have seen firsthand in Colorado the positive impact these types of projects have in preserving our agricultural communities and I urge conservatives in other states around the nation to embrace it.’

The resolution provides an actionable path forward for counties looking to adopt community solar and agrivoltaics. The resolution finds that ‘solar facilities on unproductive or nonproductive farm ground can provide a passive income for farmers to weather adverse events or uncertainty’ and ‘solar production and agrivoltaics can also help young farmers afford to buy land for farming production.’

‘Conservative policymakers around the country are embracing community solar as an opportunity to prioritize economic development and increase consumer choice,’ says Larry Ward, President and CEO of Conservatives for a Clean Energy Future (CCEF). ‘We are hopeful that this ALEC resolution will encourage more conservative lawmakers to explore how community solar can promote energy freedom and prosperity in their counties.’

‘We thank Commissioner Saine for her leadership on energy issues and for shining a light on how community solar can support family farms,’ says Jeff Cramer, CEO and President of the Coalition for Community Solar Access (CCSA). ‘The ALEC resolution provides a crucial framework for conservative lawmakers who continue to support community solar, to deliver more choices, more competition, and more opportunity in their districts all while boosting domestic energy production and bringing cost stability to ratepayers.’

‘Conservative policymakers around the country are embracing community solar as an opportunity to prioritize local economic development, increase consumer choice, and strengthen America’s power grid,’ says John Szoka, CEO of Conservative Energy Network (CEN). ‘Community solar is a prime example of free market-led innovation that saves individuals and businesses money, generates income and financial security for landowners, and creates American jobs.’

Currently, 19 states and the District of Columbia have policies in place that permit third-party, competitive community solar development, while multiple states are advancing legislation to enable new programs, including Republican-sponsored bills in Wisconsin, Iowa, Ohio, Missouri, Georgia, and Pennsylvania. Research from CEN has found that 60% of Republicans and 65% of Independents support community solar, emphasizing the growing support from conservative voters for more competition in the energy market and more freedom in energy choices.”