It’s no surprise that people want to learn more about how to save on electric bills. One simple solution is subscribing to community solar, which can help customers save 10% on their overall energy costs, all without investing in equipment that needs to be installed on their property.

New York Committed to Making Affordable Electricity Available to All

New York has a solar program called NY-Sun, which is a public-private partnership run by the New York Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). The primary goal of NY-Sun is to make solar energy more accessible so people across the state, no matter their location or building type, can save on energy while benefiting from clean, renewable energy. Community solar is an important part of the initiative because it can be used by so many more people than just those who can afford (and have appropriate buildings for) solar panels.

New York now has more than 1GW of community solar installed, becoming the leading US state for community solar, according to New York Governor Kathy Hochul. The state’s goal is to achieve 70% of the local electricity from renewable sources by 2030. That’s enough to deliver clean, renewable energy to power over 627,000 New York homes.

A New, Easier Way: Consolidated Billing

As a New York resident, understanding how your solar credits appear on your electric bill recently became much easier. New York State Electric & Gas (NYSEG) introduced what is called consolidated billing, meaning the solar energy credits and discounts are directly deducted from your utility bill and show up right on the NSYEG paperwork. There’s no dual billing or lag between when affordable electricity is billed and the time the solar credits appear. Instead, the credits show up and are deducted from the amount you need to pay. The only difference New Yorkers will see is the savings on their monthly energy bill.

In New York State, consolidated billing was implemented by NYSEG to make opting into renewable energy easy. New York pioneered this approach in 2019 to help customers see their savings directly on their utility bills. There are multiple benefits to this method of billing, including reducing consumer costs involved with subscribing to community solar, improved customer experience and satisfaction, and making it easier to enroll to save on energy with more affordable electricity.  NYSEG sends the usual utility bill and includes solar energy credits and discounts directly deducted. The customer receives a bill as they always have but with the credits already there. There isn’t a second communication from Nautilus Solar.

Nautilus Solar is thrilled to be part of the solar energy community in New York, knowing we’re helping people save on their electric bills while helping the environment. Making it easier for customers to be involved makes it even better.

Now that you know how to save on your electric bill, are you ready to learn more about community solar options? Click here to see if we’re in your community.