Department of Public Service proposes utility-run "Renewable Energy for Communities" program as successor to group net metering

The Vermont Department of Public Service on March 27 urged the House Energy and Digital Infrastructure Committee to adopt a utility‑run Renewable Energy for Communities program as the primary successor to group net metering created under Act 179 of 2024.

The recommendation, presented by Claire McElvenney, the department’s data and equity policy manager, and TJ Borm, director of planning, centers on a periodic, utility‑led request for proposals to select community renewable projects that would count toward utilities’ tier 2 obligations under the state Renewable Energy Standard. The department also proposed cost‑containment mechanisms to limit potential rate impacts to nonparticipating customers.

Why it matters: group net metering has historically allowed multiple off‑takers to share the benefits of a single project, including off‑site (virtual) arrangements that Act 179 sunsets. The department framed the proposal as a way to preserve and expand access to community renewables—especially for affordable housing, manufactured home communities and other frontline or impacted communities—while managing electric‑rate impacts through oversight by…