Now is your chance to tell City Council to reject CPS Energy’s proposed fees on solar. The utility will make the proposal at City Council’s B-Session at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, June 11.

The proposal, approved by the utility’s Board of Trustees, calls for the largest monthly fee in the nation to be charged to people who purchase solar energy systems for their home or business.

You can witness the CPS Energy presentation to City Council by going to City Hall on Wednesday or by streaming the B-session live. You are also welcome to voice your concerns at the Citizens to Be Heard meeting, also on Wednesday at City Hall, at 6 p.m. To do so, you will need to register on Wednesday. Registration starts at 8 a.m.

CPSE claims the fee is necessary to recover fixed costs that solar adopters are supposedly not paying because solar allows them to reduce their energy demand and lower their electricity bill — resulting in less revenue for the utility.

This proposal comes after years of CPSE encouraging residents to install solar by offering a solar rebate through the utility’s Save for Tomorrow Energy Plan (STEP). STEP is a ratepayer funded initiative launched in May 2009 with a goal of reducing the city’s demand for electricity by 771 megawatts to avoid spending millions of dollars on a new power plant.

read more via Urge City Council to Reject New CPS Energy Solar Proposal | The Solar Times.