Bill would let small rooftop solar owners join group net‑metering projects; utilities flag accounting and tariff complications

Representative Kat McGee introduced HB 654 FN, which would allow small customer generators (defined in statute as facilities with maximum capacity up to 100 kilowatts alternating current) to serve as members of group net‑metering arrangements.

Nut graf: Supporters said the change removes a statutory prohibition that prevents small distributed generators—sometimes rooftop solar systems that already take part in individual net metering—from joining group projects organized by a host. They said allowing small generators to be group members can increase participation, support pooled projects, and make aggregation and community energy models more flexible.

Matt Young, an attorney at the New Hampshire Department of Energy, said the department is neutral but warned HB 654 could run counter to the original purpose of the group‑host designation and would complicate utility and state registration and accounting. "This language does permit a group host who is a customer generator to be a host themselves, which would complicate the financial and energy usage accounting," Young told the committee. He said the department also was concerned about the potential for "double dipping," where customer generators could receive compensation under the small‑generator tariff and also receive group credits.

Michael Licata of Eversource said utilities currently assign tariff treatment based on the account and meter name: if an account is in a commercial name it is billed under commercial rates; if the account is in a residential name it receives residential treatment. Licata told the committee that the company’s billing systems are not designed to administer dual compensation streams and said the change could require costly manual or system upgrades. "Our billing systems would not be able to accommodate that as they are currently structured," Licata said.

Representative Tony Reynolds (summary testimony to the committee) described how group net‑metering is typically used: a host installs a larger solar array and signs up other customers’ load to account for exported energy. Reynolds said membership normally does not create new public‑fund costs; it reallocates the host’s export value among members.

Ending: The department offered to work with sponsors and stakeholders if the committee wishes to proceed. No vote was taken at the hearing; committee members asked clarifying questions about accounting, load assignment and how overlapping group and individual net‑metering arrangements would be treated.