Rooftop solar owners got a raw deal

Wednesday’s editorial on solar power was an unfair assault on the net metering debacle that has occurred. The real issue is not that the rebates and incentives offered to homeowners to install PV solar panels are supporting an industry that needs to compete on its merits, but rather that after entering the game, the rules were changed for the players in the game.

I personally avoided installing panels for years because they simply were not financially a sound investment. But with the federal rebates offered for installation, along with the kilowatt for kilowatt trade on my monthly bill, it penciled out at a reasonable return on investment. Not great, but reasonable.

So we did a sizable investment for a 10Kw system, only to have the rules changed within six months to a very unfavorable condition. That was simply unfair. We invested substantial money into a system under rules and rates that one could only assume would remain in play, only to find that they could be changed quickly to a very unfavorable situation. No wonder the industry tanked.

The system needs only to be fair to the consumer, not favorable, to reignite the solar industry in Nevada.

I’m opposed to rebates and favorable treatment, too, and believe that the solar industry needs to succeed or fail on its own merits. But I’m also opposed to changing the rules in the middle of the game.