SMART falls short and risks future of solar in Massachusetts
A new solar incentive program, known as SMART, has been proposed to support the continued development of solar in Massachusetts. A range of issues with the program, however, threaten the continued viability of key market segments, including community shared and low income solar. Issues with the program include signigicantly lower compensation levels that will make many projects uneconomic, program complexity that make it impossible for the lay person to readily understand, and poor program design that increases uncertainty and will discourage investment.
The Department of Energy Resources (DOER) is accepting public comments on SMART until July 11th. It's important that DOER hear from as many stakeholders as possible to increase the likelihood that the problems with SMART will be addressed. To help you with that, MassSolar has compiled the following materials:
- SMART basics
- SMART overview and analysis from the community shared and low income perspective
- MassSolar review of SMART program and impact on solar sectors (PPT)
- General SMART talking points and comment submission instructions
- DOER template low income solar comment letters: version 1 and version 2
- Low income solar talking points
- Residential solar SMART overview
- SMART tariff review- Alternative On-Bill Crediting Mechanism
This page will be updated as more materials are finalized and become available.
