New net metering rules have been approved by the Iowa Legislature

The coronavirus epidemic has taken over most of the headlines in Iowa, which is why a change affecting farm, home and business owners in Iowa who have solar panels might have gone unnoticed.

The Iowa Legislature has approved and Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds has signed legislation making net metering the law of the state.

Senate File 583 applies to Alliant Energy and MidAmerican Energy, directing both utilities to file with the Iowa Utilities Board new net metering tariffs. Customers with solar panels will be charged for energy usage the same as any other customer in their rate class and will be credited for any surplus kilowatt hours they feed to the grid. Those credits would then offset future purchases of electricity from the utility.

Solar energy-producing customers would choose between "net billing," under which customers receive 50 percent of the avoided electricity cost rate as a cash credit, or "Inflow/Outflow," under which customers would forfeit any credit above the cost of the electricity they purchase from Alliant or MidAmerican.

Winneshiek Energy District Director Andy Johnson calls passage of the legislation "a major victory." Johnson says, "The new law isn't perfect…but the solar opportunity for Iowa is still shining brightly."