SACRAMENTO – A key State Senate committee has voted to approve legislation by North Coast Senator Patricia Wiggins (D-Santa Rosa) that will likely encourage increased generation of solar power by both residential and commercial producers.

The Senate Committee on Energy, Utilities & Commerce voted 10-0 to pass Senate Bill 7 on Monday, sending the Wiggins measure on to the Senate Appropriations Committee for further consideration.

According to Wiggins, SB 7 would allow a “net-energy” solar customer to roll over excess solar power credits, if the customer doesn’t use the credits by the end of the year, for up to two years.

Her bill also requires the Public Utilities Commission (PUC), to evaluate the excess solar power credits, in a report that it is already required to submit to the Legislature, about the cost and benefits of net-energy metering. The PUC report would be due June 30, 2010.

In her testimony before the members of the committee, Wiggins said that “the problem I am attempting to resolve surrounds the rules of net energy metering. Existing law allows a customer of a utility provider, such as PG & E or SMUD, to sell solar power to the utility provider in order to offset the cost of his or her electric bill. This is referred to as net-energy metering.

“If the customer produces enough solar power to cover their electrical use, the customer owes nothing on their bill at the end of the year,” Wiggins added. “If the customer produces less solar power than the electricity consumed, at the end of the year, the customer owes the utility provider money.

“The problem is,” Wiggins said, “that the customer can also produce more solar power than the customer consumes, but the utility provider doesn’t have to pay the customer anything – zero – at the end of the year. SB 7 simply attempts to address this issue once and for all.”

The Wiggins legislation is sponsored by Recolte Energy and Sustainable Napa County. Additional supporters include the California Farm Bureau Federation, Dolce Winery, Family Winemakers of California, Far Niente Winery, National Development Council, Nickel & Nickel Winery, Oakland City Council, Peter A. & Vernice H. Gasser Foundation, Planning and Conservation League, Redwood Empire Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council and the Wine Institute.

Wiggins represents California’s 2nd Senate District, which is comprised of portions, or all, of Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Solano and Sonoma counties.