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Power board recommends city council consider raising net-metering cap to 8 kW AC
Summary
The Parowan City Power Board recommended that the city council update the net-metering policy to an 8 kW AC standard cap, with case-by-case exceptions up to about 110% of a customer’s historical peak usage for customers with a 12‑month consumption history.
The Parowan City Power Board on June 19 recommended that the city council consider raising the residential net‑metering cap to 8 kilowatts AC and allow exceptions for larger systems when a customer can document at least 12 months of historical usage.
Power Director Jeremy Franklin told the board the current cap is 5 kW and said that level “might be discriminating against people who use more power,” presenting a usage analysis for Paul and Bernardine Byl that showed a July peak of about 15.3 kW. Franklin said comparator cities use caps ranging from 5 kW to 16 kW, and that an 8 kW cap would let larger households meaningfully offset consumption while reducing the risk of overproduction.
Board members discussed several approaches: set a flat new cap at 8 kW AC; create a case‑by‑case exception process for customers with a long usage history; or tie maximum system size to a percentage (discussed at about 110%) of a customer’s historical peak. Franklin said staff would recommend keeping a standard 8 kW cap for new homes without a 12‑month history to manage potential overproduction risk.
Paul and Bernardine Byl participated in the discussion as the example customer whose usage drove the conversation; the board noted that under the current 5 kW limit their system would not offset a substantial portion of the household’s load. The board voted to forward the recommendation to the Parowan City Council for consideration; the change would require council action to take effect.
