Committee advances community‑solar bill after clash over costs and interconnection guarantees

The House Finance Committee voted to advance House Bill 2025 to the next stage after a contentious hearing over costs and interconnection policy for community solar projects.

Sponsor Representative Smith said HB2025 would protect subscriber savings, speed project delivery to meet federal tax‑credit deadlines and allow developers to use surety bonds to secure interconnection upgrade payments. "HB2025 will speed up the interconnection process so that solar developers can get their projects built before 2029," the sponsor said.

Charlotte Huff, a regulatory policy specialist at Xcel Energy, testified in opposition, saying the bill’s proposed bill‑credit formula and acceptance of surety bonds would increase costs and risks for utility customers. She told the committee that current estimates for community solar bill credits already approach large sums over long periods and that the bill could add hundreds of millions in customer costs under Xcel’s modeling.

Developers and industry proponents, including SunShare and the Colorado Solar and Storage Association, disputed Xcel’s modeling and defended the surety option as a way to avoid long cash deposits that sit in utility accounts for years. "Surety bonds are used in many other circumstances as well," developer counsel Mike Foote said, arguing the risk of developer default is low and that bonds can free up developer capital.

Committee members asked technical and fiscal questions about bill‑credit methodology, surety payment timing and the distributional effect on ratepayers. Sponsors said they will continue stakeholder talks with utilities and labor to refine terms. The committee voted to advance HB2025 (8–3) to committee review where remaining fiscal and technical issues will be examined.