I’m contacting you because there’s an emergency at the Montana Legislature. The House Energy, Telecommunications, and Foreign Relations Committee is considering SB 78, which would effectively cut solar reimbursement, or net-metering, by half, from approximately 11 cents a Kilowatt to 6 cents. These cuts are arbitrary, not born out by any studies done either by the Legislature or the Montana Public Service Committee.
Please take the time to write your legislator and the members of the House Energy, Telecommunications, and Foreign Relations Committee and tell them to reject SB 78. Tell them you support expanding solar energy in Montana. Tell them Montana should not be going backwards, and their job is to create incentives for one of the cheapest sources of energy, solar power, one growing at unheard of rates, employing thousands of Montanans, and an industry that contributes zero greenhouse gases to accelerate climate change. It’s the solution other states like Colorado and California are embracing.
You can write your legislator by going here: http://leg.mt.gov/css/
If you’ve never done it before, it’s easy. You fill out your information (name, address, etc.). Then you select your legislator from the pull-down menu, select the bill (SB 78), and then write your message in the box.
In one fell swoop, you can write all the representatives on the House Energy, Telecommunications, and Foreign Relations Committee by going here: http://leg.mt.gov/css/
About halfway down the page select COMMITTEE instead of legislator and find the House Energy, Telecommunication, and Foreign Relations Committee in the drop-down menu. Then write your message.
Northern Plains Resource Council has a fact sheet about SB 78 that goes into great detail about why it’s a horrible bill. Go here:
https://www.northernplains.
Thanks for being in the loop.
Jeff Smith, co-chair, 350 Montana