Sacramento ‰ April 26– The California State Assembly advanced the Million Solar Roofs bill, SB 1 (Murray), with a 6-1 vote, helping to round out the broadly supported California Solar Initiative adopted by the California Public Utilities Commission this past January. The bill will now head to the Assembly Floor for a final vote in the Assembly.

Several key policies are still needed to achieve the million solar roofs, 3,000 MW of solar power goal. These policies, which are contained in SB 1, include:

Ø      Mandate that all new homes come with solar panels as a standard option, just like granite counter tops;

Ø      Lifting the cap on net metering to 2.5% to allow solar system owners to receive a credit on their electric bill for any excess solar power they generate;

Ø      Requiring that the state’s municipally run utilities adopt their own solar rebate programs.

The California Solar Initiative, adopted by the PUC in January, created a $3.2 billion pot of money for consumer rebates, available from 2007 through 2016, The program is the largest investment in solar power in the country and promises to increase demand 30-fold, cut the cost of solar by 50% within 10 years, and create a mainstream, self-sufficient solar market.

Homeowners, businesses, schools, farms and many others interested in investing in solar power will be eligible for the rebates. The typical California home today installs a 2.5 kilowatt system. With today’s rebate level, the average $20,000 price tag for the system would be reduced by $7,000. In addition, over the next two years, homeowners can take advantage of a federal tax credit reducing the total cost by an additional $2,000. When combined with low interest loans, lowered electric bills and the ability to get a credit for excess electricity generated by the solar system, California homeowners could expect a return on their estimated $11,000 investment within the first month.