PUC hearing: advocates say income-qualified community solar promised in 2022-25 plan delivered no bill credits; utility points to rollover and development timet

Kelly Rosenberg, the administrative law judge overseeing Colorado Public Utilities Commission proceeding 25ADash0194E, heard competing accounts Wednesday about whether the IQ components of the company's 2022'25 renewable energy plan have produced the bill-credit benefits the plan and settlement projected.

Andrew Bennett, vice president of advocacy at Energy Outreach Colorado, told the hearing that EOC's records show thousands of income-qualified customers on a community solar wait list and that, "we've had 3 years and a month or so of basically nothing being interconnected." Bennett urged the commission to consider targeted remedies for IQ customers who have paid into the Renewable Energy Standard Adjustment (RESA) but have not received planned community-solar bill credits.

"These customers are not receiving the benefits," Bennett said while summarizing EOC's calculation of foregone benefits and urging a $5 million-per-year, five-year energy-assistance program to bridge the gap until projects produce bill credits.

Public Service Company of Colorado witnesses agreed that, as of snapshot data in admitted discovery, the company had…