S.F. _____ Section 1. Section 476.1, Code 2026, is amended by adding 1 the following new subsection: 2 NEW SUBSECTION . 5. A community solar facility established 3 pursuant to section 476.50 shall not be regarded as a public 4 utility for purposes of this chapter. 5 Sec. 2. Section 476.25, Code 2026, is amended by adding the 6 following new subsection: 7 NEW SUBSECTION . 4. The furnishing of electricity pursuant 8 to a community solar facility under section 476.50 shall not 9 be considered an unnecessary duplication of electric utility 10 facilities and shall not constitute a violation of this 11 section. 12 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION . 476.50 Community solar facility 13 program —— established. 14 1. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise 15 requires: 16 a. “Bill credit” means the monetary value of the electricity 17 in kilowatt-hours generated by the community solar facility 18 allocated to a subscriber to offset that subscriber’s 19 electricity bill. 20 b. “Brownfield site” means an abandoned, idled, or 21 underutilized industrial or commercial facility where 22 expansion or redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived 23 environmental contamination, including wastewater treatment 24 lagoons, active and former quarry and mining ponds, storm water 25 detention ponds, cooling ponds, and manure ponds. A brownfield 26 site includes property contiguous with the property on which 27 the individual or commercial facility is located. 28 c. (1) Except as provided in subparagraph (2), “community 29 solar facility” means a distributed generation facility that 30 generates electricity by means of a solar photovoltaic device 31 whereby subscribers receive a bill credit for the electricity 32 generated in proportion to the size of the customer’s 33 subscription and all of the following conditions apply: 34 (a) The facility is located on one or more parcels of 35 -1- LSB 5790XC (5) 91 sb/js 1/ 10

S.F. _____ land within the assigned area of service of that utility and 1 no other community solar facility under the control of the 2 same entity, an affiliate’s entity, or an entity under common 3 control is located on that land. 4 (b) At the time the facility initially meets the 5 requirements set forth in the tariff to participate in the 6 program, the facility is not located within one mile, measured 7 from the point of interconnection, of a community solar 8 facility under the control of the same entity. 9 (c) The facility has at least three subscribers once it 10 becomes operational. 11 (d) The facility generates not more than five megawatts 12 of electricity as measured in alternating current unless the 13 facility is located on a brownfield site, whereby the facility 14 may generate not more than twenty megawatts of electricity as 15 measured in alternating current. 16 (e) No subscriber holds more than a forty percent interest 17 in the output of the facility unless the facility is located on 18 the same parcel of land as the subscriber’s electric service 19 premises and the subscription reflects on-site load rather than 20 resale or aggregation. 21 (f) Not less than sixty percent of the capacity of the 22 facility is subscribed to by subscriptions of not more than 23 forty kilowatts. The requirements of this subparagraph 24 division shall not apply to the portion of a facility’s 25 capacity subscribed pursuant to the on-site load exception 26 described in subparagraph division (e), provided that no more 27 than forty percent of the facility’s total capacity may be 28 excluded from the requirements of this subparagraph division 29 under that exception. 30 (2) A distributed generation facility qualifies as a 31 community solar facility if the distributed generation facility 32 generates not more than one megawatt of electricity as measured 33 in alternating current and meets the conditions described in 34 subparagraph (1), subparagraph divisions (a), (b), and (d), 35 -2- LSB 5790XC (5) 91 sb/js 2/ 10

S.F. _____ even if the distributed generation facility does not meet any 1 of the conditions described in subparagraph (1), subparagraph 2 divisions (c), (e), and (f). 3 d. “Electric utility” means a public utility that furnishes 4 electricity to the public for compensation that is required to 5 be rate-regulated under this chapter. 6 e. “Subscriber” means a customer of an electric utility 7 subject to this section who owns one or more subscriptions to a 8 community solar facility interconnected with that utility. 9 f. “Subscriber organization” means a for-profit or nonprofit 10 entity that owns or operates one or more community solar 11 facilities. 12 g. “Subscription” means a proportional contractual interest 13 in a community solar facility under which the estimated bill 14 credits of the subscriber do not exceed the average annual 15 bill for the customer account to which the subscription is 16 attributed. 17 2. a. A community solar facility program is established 18 to encourage and enhance the generation of solar energy and to 19 encourage and enhance the ability of electric utility customers 20 to participate in and derive benefit from alternate solar 21 energy projects. 22 b. A community solar facility authorized under this 23 section shall not serve or offer to serve electric customers 24 in an exclusive service area assigned to a rural electric 25 cooperative, nor shall a community solar facility authorized 26 under this section construct facilities in an exclusive service 27 area assigned to a rural electric cooperative unless expressly 28 authorized by the rural electric cooperative in whose exclusive 29 service area the facility would be located. 30 c. An electric utility shall provide a bill credit to a 31 subscriber’s subsequent monthly electric bill. Any amount of 32 the bill credit that exceeds the subscriber’s monthly bill 33 shall be carried over in the subscriber’s account and applied 34 to the next month’s bill in perpetuity. 35 -3- LSB 5790XC (5) 91 sb/js 3/ 10

S.F. _____ d. An electric utility shall be required to bill subscribers 1 to a community solar facility in accordance with section 2 476.49, to the extent that section does not conflict with this 3 section. 4 e. (1) Prior to the establishment of the value of solar 5 methodology and rate under section 476.49, a subscriber to a 6 community solar facility that qualifies for bill credits at the 7 applicable retail volumetric rate shall have a minimum monthly 8 electric bill that cannot be reduced below one hundred fifty 9 percent of the commission-approved current basic service charge 10 applicable to the subscriber’s rate class. 11 (2) The total capacity of the community solar program prior 12 to the establishment of the value of solar methodology and rate 13 under section 476.49 shall be no greater than two hundred fifty 14 megawatts total statewide. 15 (3) After the establishment of the value of solar 16 methodology and rate, a subscriber to a community solar 17 facility that qualifies for bill credits shall not be subject 18 to a minimum bill under subparagraph (1) and the capacity limit 19 on the statewide program shall not apply. 20 f. An electric utility shall review its interconnection 21 processes to ensure they are adequate to facilitate the 22 efficient and cost-effective interconnection of community solar 23 facilities and allow an investor-owned electric utility to 24 recover reasonable interconnection costs for each community 25 solar facility. Such interconnection costs shall be the 26 responsibility of the subscriber organization or owner of 27 the community solar facility and shall not be applied to 28 nonparticipating ratepayers. Interconnection facilities and 29 upgrades funded by the subscriber organization or owner of the 30 community solar facility shall become part of the electric 31 utility’s distribution system and may enhance system capacity, 32 reliability, and operational flexibility for all customers. 33 g. A subscriber may subscribe all of their electricity 34 meters to a community solar facility. 35 -4- LSB 5790XC (5) 91 sb/js 4/ 10

S.F. _____ h. Community solar facilities may be owned by investors. 1 i. An electric utility shall provide a bill credit to 2 a subscriber’s subsequent monthly electric bill for the 3 proportional output of a community solar facility attributable 4 to that subscriber for not less than twenty-five years from the 5 date the solar facility is first placed into operation. 6 j. A subscriber organization shall periodically and in 7 a standardized electronic format provide to the electric 8 utility whose service territory includes the location of the 9 subscriber organization’s community solar facility a subscriber 10 list indicating the percentage of generation attributable 11 to each of the electric utility’s retail customers who are 12 subscribers to a community solar facility in accordance with 13 the subscriber’s portion of the output of the community solar 14 facility. The electric utility shall create a platform for the 15 subscriber organization to periodically communicate updates to 16 the subscriber list to reflect canceling subscribers and new 17 subscribers. 18 k. An electric utility shall provide a subscriber 19 organization a report each month in a standardized electronic 20 format detailing the total value of bill credits generated 21 by the subscriber organization’s community solar facility in 22 the prior month and the amount of bill credits applied to each 23 subscriber. 24 l. A subscriber organization may accumulate bill credits 25 if all of the electricity generated by a community solar 26 facility is not allocated to subscribers in a given month. On 27 an annual basis, the subscriber organization shall furnish 28 to the electric utility whose service territory includes the 29 location of the subscriber organization’s community solar 30 facility instructions for distributing accumulated bill 31 credits to subscribers. The electric utility shall apply 32 accumulated credits to a subscriber’s electric utility account 33 in accordance with section 476.49. Any credits not distributed 34 to subscribers annually will be forfeited. 35 -5- LSB 5790XC (5) 91 sb/js 5/ 10

S.F. _____ m. Any renewable energy credits created from the production 1 of electricity in a community solar facility are the property 2 of the subscriber organization that owns or operates the 3 community solar facility. The subscriber organization may 4 sell, accumulate, retire, or distribute to subscribers the 5 renewable energy credits of the subscriber organization. 6 3. The commission shall adopt rules to implement the 7 provisions of this section that accomplish all of the 8 following: 9 a. Reasonably allow for the creation and financing of 10 community solar facilities. 11 b. Allow all customer classes to participate as subscribers 12 to a community solar facility, and ensure participation 13 opportunities for all customer classes. 14 c. Prohibit removing a customer from the customer’s 15 applicable customer class due to the customer subscribing to a 16 community solar facility. 17 d. Reasonably allow for the transferability and portability 18 of subscriptions, including allowing a subscriber to retain a 19 subscription to a community solar facility if the subscriber 20 moves within the same investor-owned electric utility’s service 21 territory. 22 e. Modify existing interconnection standards, fees, 23 and processes as needed to facilitate the efficient and 24 cost-effective interconnection of community solar facilities 25 and that allow an electric utility to recover reasonable 26 interconnection costs for each community solar facility. 27 f. Provide for consumer protection in accordance with 28 existing laws. The commission may establish a registration 29 process for any subscriber organization or affiliate seeking 30 to solicit community solar subscribers. The commission may 31 adopt rules to ensure that a subscriber organization retains 32 marketing information for a reasonable time period and provides 33 to subscribers a disclosure in plain language that includes all 34 fees and costs associated with the subscription. 35 -6- LSB 5790XC (5) 91 sb/js 6/ 10

S.F. _____ g. Allow an electric utility to recover costs of applying 1 bill credits under this section. 2 h. Ensure an electric utility does not unreasonably refuse 3 or delay interconnection of a community solar facility. 4 i. Require a subscriber organization to satisfy 5 interconnection process benchmarks, demonstrate site control, 6 and obtain all applicable nonministerial permits for a 7 community solar facility before the subscriber organization 8 owns or operates the facility. 9 4. a. Not later than eighteen months after a community 10 solar facility has ceased generating electricity, except for 11 instances when the owner is actively working to recommence 12 production of electricity, including instances following the 13 occurrence of a force majeure or similar event, the owner of 14 the community solar facility shall commence decommissioning of 15 the facility. 16 b. Unless the property owner authorizing the community 17 solar facility to operate on the property and the owner of 18 the community solar facility mutually agree in writing on 19 an alternative condition for restoring the property, the 20 decommissioning plan for the community solar facility shall 21 include all of the following: 22 (1) Removal of all nonelectric utility-owned equipment, 23 conduits, structures, fencing, and foundations to a depth of at 24 least three feet below grade. 25 (2) Removal of all graveled areas and access roads. 26 (3) Restoration of the property to a condition reasonably 27 similar to its condition before the commencement of 28 construction, except for ordinary wear and degradation and any 29 changes to the condition of the property caused by or at the 30 request of the property owner. 31 (4) To the extent practicable and seasonally appropriate, 32 at the request of the property owner, reseeding, or causing the 33 reseeding of, any cleared areas on the property. 34 5. a. The owner of a community solar facility shall 35 -7- LSB 5790XC (5) 91 sb/js 7/ 10

S.F. _____ maintain sufficient financial assurances in the form of a bond, 1 a parent company guaranty with a minimum investment grade 2 credit rating for the parent company issued by a major domestic 3 credit rating agency, or a letter of credit to provide for 4 decommissioning. 5 b. The amount of financial assurance shall be equal to the 6 cost of decommissioning the community solar facility, less the 7 facility’s salvage value, and shall be updated periodically, 8 but not less than every ten years. 9 c. Decommissioning and salvage value costs shall be 10 calculated by an independent professional engineer at the 11 expense of the owner of the community solar facility. 12 Sec. 4. IMPLEMENTATION OF TARIFFS. By January 1, 2027, an 13 electric utility, as defined in section 476.50, as enacted by 14 this Act, shall file new or updated tariffs, if applicable, to 15 implement any necessary changes resulting from this Act. 16 EXPLANATION 17 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 18 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 19 This bill establishes a community solar facility program. 20 The bill specifies that “electric utility” for purposes 21 of the bill means a public utility that provides electricity 22 to the public for compensation and is required to be 23 rate-regulated under Code chapter 476. The bill defines 24 “brownfield site” to mean an abandoned, idled, or underutilized 25 industrial or commercial facility where expansion or 26 redevelopment is complicated by real or perceived environmental 27 contamination. The bill defines “community solar facility” 28 to mean a distributed generation facility that generates 29 electricity through solar panels whereby subscribers may 30 receive bill credits for the electricity generated in 31 proportion to the size of the customer’s subscription. The 32 bill defines “subscriber” to mean a customer of an electric 33 utility who owns at least one share of a subscription to a 34 community solar facility. “Subscriber organization” means 35 -8- LSB 5790XC (5) 91 sb/js 8/ 10

S.F. _____ a for-profit or nonprofit entity that owns or operates 1 one or more community solar facilities. The bill defines 2 “subscription” to mean a proportional contractual interest in a 3 community solar facility. 4 The bill establishes a community solar facility program to 5 encourage and enhance solar energy generation and the ability 6 of electric public utility customers to participate in and 7 derive benefit from alternate solar energy projects. 8 The bill requires an electric utility to bill subscribers in 9 accordance with billing methods established pursuant to Code 10 section 476.49. 11 The bill requires an electric utility to review its 12 interconnection processes with community solar facilities 13 to ensure adequacy, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness 14 and to allow an investor-owned electric utility to recover 15 reasonable interconnection costs. The bill directs the 16 interconnection to be the responsibility of the subscriber 17 organization or owner of the community solar facility 18 and not applied to nonparticipating ratepayers. The bill 19 states that interconnection facilities and upgrades funded 20 by the subscriber organization or owner of the community 21 solar facility shall become part of the electric utility’s 22 distribution system for all customers. The bill allows a 23 subscriber to include all of the subscriber’s electricity 24 meters in the community solar facility. The bill provides that 25 a community solar facility may be owned by investors. The 26 bill provides specific procedures and requirements for the 27 administration of bill credits and subscriber information. 28 The bill requires the Iowa utilities commission to adopt 29 rules regarding implementation of the bill’s provisions. 30 The bill requires the owner of a community solar facility to 31 have a decommissioning plan, including financial assurances. 32 The bill provides procedures and requirements for the 33 decommissioning of a community solar facility. 34 The bill requires an electric utility to file new or updated 35 -9- LSB 5790XC (5) 91 sb/js 9/ 10