Senate committee recommends sending bill to floor to rename Minnesotas community solar program for Melissa Hortman
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Summary
The Senate Energy, Utilities, Environment and Climate Committee voted March 9 to recommend passage of Senate File 3800, which would rename the Minnesota Community Solar Garden Program for late Rep. Melissa Hortman; supporters said Hortmans work launched Minnesotas community solar industry and cited program metrics showing broad low-income participation.
The Minnesota Senate Energy, Utilities, Environment and Climate Committee on March 9 recommended passage of Senate File 3800, a bill that would rename the states Community Solar Garden program as the Melissa Hortman Community Solar Garden program.
Supporters told the committee that Hortman played a central role in creating the program and that the community-solar model has been a driver of the states solar market. Pete Wyckoff, deputy commissioner for energy at the Minnesota Department of Commerce, said the program has helped Minnesota reach more than 1 gigawatt of community solar capacity and that the program is exceeding statutory targets for low- and moderate-income participation.
A0Wyckoff testified, "We have pushed the total cumulative approved solar gardens in Minnesota to over 1 gigawatt," and said the program has delivered low- and moderate-income participation rates well above the statutory minimums.
Industry witnesses said the program also helped build businesses and jobs in Minnesota. Rob Davis, chief growth officer at Clean Counts, described work to create pollinator-friendly groundcover standards that made solar projects more acceptable to rural communities. Logan O'Grady, executive director of the Minnesota Solar Energy Industries Association, and other industry witnesses credited Hortmans 2013 bill and later work to provide the statutory certainty investors need to build the sector.
Senator John Hoffman, who authored SF 3800, moved that the committee pass the bill and place it on general orders; the committee agreed and the chair called a voice vote. The chair announced the motion prevailed and the committee recommended the bill be sent to the Senate floor.
The committee recorded no roll-call vote on the record; the chair announced the outcome by voice. The bill will next go to the full Senate for further consideration.
(Reporting from the Senate Energy, Utilities, Environment and Climate Committee hearing, March 9, 2026.)