Community Solar Will Surge Despite Challenges, Empowering Communities Across the United States
As global temperatures continue to rise and we try to cope with the impacts of climate change we are already experiencing, community solar has emerged as a beacon of hope for a clean, renewable future. While political divisions persist, one thing is clear: community solar enjoys broad bipartisan support, providing an equitable and accessible energy solution to millions. With a steady increase in capacity and strong backing from both sides of the aisle, community solar is poised to play a crucial role in America’s transition to sustainable energy.
Despite the quarter-over-quarter decline in Q4 of last year due to New York’s community solar installations slowing down a bit, other states saw a spur of growth while the community solar sector as a whole saw a 12% year-over-year increase in 2024, resulting in 291 MW(dc) of new capacity. The development of community solar projects and state policies to support them is ramping up in Maryland, New Jersey, and Delaware. The Solar Energy Industry Association (SEIA) projects that the community solar market will grow at an average annual rate of 5% through 2029, with cumulative capacity on track to break 15 GW(DC) by 2030, but this doesn’t take into account the state markets that have proposed program legislation that is not yet official.
Solar, and community solar in particular is supported by both Democrats and Republicans alike. Although most Republicans believe fossil fuels should remain a part of the U.S. energy mix, a majority of Americans (64%) across both sides of the political divide say the U.S. should prioritize expanding wind, solar, and hydrogen power. With new generations comes a shift in beliefs and priorities as younger folks reckon with the dystopian future they may inherit as the devastating effects we already see resulting from climate change continue to spread. Pew Research Center reports that “younger Republicans are far more likely than older Republicans to prioritize renewable energy.”
The tipping point we have reached is no longer just about the cost of solar technology being too cheap to beat. As younger generations rise to positions of power, they’re proving that the momentum of the solar industry may be able to evade the political divide it has been unable to bridge until now. Today, 52% of Republicans aged 18 to 29 favor offshore oil and gas drilling, hydraulic fracturing and coal mining while 80% of Republicans in that age group are more likely to favor expanding the development of solar farms.
President Trump’s second term is accompanied by fear for the future of renewables, including the solar industry. Fortunately, the outlook is still quite promising. According to Politico, data shows that the solar industry is “too big to fail”, Regardless of the Trump administration’s considerations to pull back subsidies, most analysts say we’re past the tipping point where there is already too much momentum for the industry’s success to be reversed.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports that we must nearly double capacity from 2022 to 2050 with most newly built capacity coming from renewable energy sources. Experts predict a 75% increase in solar power generation in the U.S. since 2023, resulting in 286 billion kWh in 2025.
“Economic growth paired with increasing electrification in end-use sectors results in stable growth in U.S. electric power demand through 2050 in all cases,” according to the EIA.
The SEIA’s latest report in Q4 2024 shows that solar power represented 64% of the new capacity added to the nation’s power grid last year, leading to enough installed solar capacity to power over 37 million U.S. homes each year.
President Trump recently voiced that “no new windmills” would be built while he’s in office, despite the eleven commercial-scale offshore wind projects already approved by the Biden administration. According to the New York Times, he has been clear about his disdain for wind turbines since he failed to prevent an offshore wind farm from being built in the eyeline of one of his Scottish gold courses, insisting that they “obviously” kill whales in addition to littering our country like “garbage in a field.”
Wind power accounts for a significant percentage of production in conservative states like Iowa, Wyoming, and Texas, making it “a bipartisan energy source,” according to Leah Stokes, a political scientist at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Despite the demonstrated support of Republican states when it comes to wind energy, President Trump continues to state that “We are going to have a policy where no windmills are being built.”
Community solar stands out amongst other renewables as the star of the solar industry thanks to its widespread accessibility and strong bipartisan support, as well as the demonstrated benefits it provides to the communities where projects are located, both economically and environmentally. Since community solar programs are regulated by state policy, they can easily adapt to each state’s unique needs and circumstances.
Solar For All is a $7 billion federal program with a goal of installing enough solar to provide clean energy and lower utility bills to nearly a million low-income households over the next five years. A majority of the state agencies and nonprofit recipients interviewed by Floodlight News “feel confident the change in administration won’t derail their plans to roll out Solar for All.” Fortunately for all parties involved, solar developers have already locked in their panel supply so the supply chain won’t be impacted by any potential new tariffs proposed by the Trump administration.
Today, 24 states, plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, have enacted legislation for community solar programs. In part because these programs are regulated at the state level, they are expected to avoid the brunt of any federal oversight brought on by the Trump administration. There is a valid concern in the solar industry that President Trump could follow through on his threats to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act, but officials from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report that program funds have already been “obligated,” which means its initiatives are set to begin implementation early this year.
In addition to providing household savings and electrifying the grid, community solar has been proven to increase resilience during the ever-more-common occurrence of blackouts or extreme weather events. Community solar projects have also been found to foster community wealth building and local job creation. These benefits have been celebrated by folks on both sides of the political divide, and Republican support for community solar was solidified with the recent passing of a Resolution introduced by Colorado Republican Weld County Commissioner Lori Saine that will “provide an actionable path forward for counties looking to adopt community solar and agrivoltaics.”
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), self-described as America’s largest membership organization of state legislators dedicated to the principles of free markets and federalism, passed The Resolution in Support of Farming and Energy Production unanimously, marking unprecedented bipartisan support for the development of community solar projects. Research from the Conservative Energy Network (CEN) found that 60% of Republicans and 65% of Independents support community solar, demonstrating growing conservative support for more competition in the energy market, preserving the freedom of individuals to make their own energy choices.
“Conservative policymakers around the country are embracing community solar as an opportunity to prioritize local economic development, increase consumer choice, and strengthen America’s power grid,” says John Szoka, CEO of Conservative Energy Network (CEN). “Community solar is a prime example of free market-led innovation that saves individuals and businesses money, generates income and financial security for landowners, and creates American jobs.”
As the majority of American households remain unable to install their own rooftop panels due to barriers like cost or location, community solar is poised to bridge the gap between consumer interest and action on residential solar adoption. Since a community solar subscription is accessible to anyone who pays an electricity bill, it brings renters, affordable housing residents, and people of all economic classes into the fold. Thanks to the additional discounts often available to lower-income households through Solar for All, community solar promises a more equitable and accessible path to adopting renewable energy than other sources.
Community solar farms, due to their smaller scale, are able to make use of a wide variety of sites. While large-scale solar arrays have faced backlash for their use of farmland, the Resolution in Support of Farming and Energy Production finds that “solar facilities on unproductive or nonproductive farm ground can provide a passive income for farmers to weather adverse events or uncertainty” and “solar production and agrivoltaics can also help young farmers afford to buy land for farming production.”
Neighborhood Sun has already seen this in practice. Some of the farms we manage, for example, provide passive income to struggling farmers, turn hazardous waste sites like landfills into environmental assets for community members, or increase the resilience of low-income schools that build a rooftop array on their buildings. In addition to the economic benefits for farmers, nutrient-depleted soils on overused farmland can also get a much-needed breather and be restored through agrivoltaics. The possibilities and benefits are endless as long as projects are developed intentionally and in coordination with the communities they serve.
“American farmers and ranchers deserve to have choices about how they produce energy on their farmlands,” says County Commissioner Saine. “Small-scale community solar and agrivoltaics can play an important part in our national energy future, providing opportunities for farmers and keeping farmland in production. We have seen firsthand in Colorado the positive impact these types of projects have in preserving our agricultural communities and I urge conservatives in other states around the nation to embrace it.”
Community solar projects benefit more than just farmers, creating jobs in construction, engineering, and maintenance in addition to the downstream economic effects felt in the community. One of the community solar farms managed by Neighborhood Sun is located on the roof of a Baltimore City Public School, generating over $1 million in savings on electricity bills for its local subscribers, 100% of whom qualify as low- or moderate-income (LMI) households.
In addition to providing lower electricity bills for community members, the project also doubles as a job experience site through the Climate Access Fund’s partnership with Civic Works for its solar installation occupational skills training program. This collaboration helps the school to integrate energy efficiency education and opportunities that draw connections between the rooftop panels and the classroom. Any revenue generated by the solar panels will be reinvested back into the project to benefit local LMI households. This redistribution of benefits to various stakeholders is a huge part of what makes community solar so special and immune to any of the backlash experienced by the renewable energy industry as we transition to this new administration. Through community solar, Neighborhood Sun has been able to pass on nearly $9 Million in savings on electricity bills to subscribers, with 15% of those savings going to low- or moderate-income subscribers.
For years, the threat of reaching a 1.5-degree Celsius increase in global temperatures has been looming over us. The World Meteorological Organization confirmed 2024 was the first year above this threshold since pre-industrial times, marking it the hottest year on record and a tipping point for humanity. At a time when political divisiveness puts us at risk of making decisions driven by short-term gain at our own expense, community solar stands out as a bipartisan-supported beacon of hope in the renewable industry.
The future of community solar is brighter than ever, with its ability to unite political ideologies and transform local economies. By harnessing the power of the sun and fostering inclusive participation, community solar is not only addressing the urgent need for clean energy but also building resilient, prosperous communities. As states ramp up their efforts to expand these programs, community solar is shaping up to be a critical component of America’s renewable energy future, ensuring a cleaner, more sustainable world for generations to come.
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