This week the Biden administration — in between discussing the technical definition of a recession — unveiled a new plan to get lower-income households hooked up to solar power.
Here comes the sun
The plan is to expand access to "community solar" projects, where many households can share the benefits from one larger set of solar panels. After a solar farm is built, residents can then subscribe to get credit back on their electricity bills — the idea being that this subsidy will encourage solar uptake for those households that might not be able to afford the tens of thousands of upfront costs associated with installing solar.
Data from the EIA shows how quickly solar power electricity generation has grown in the US. In the last 5 years electricity generated by solar power has more than tripled, to around 115 billion kilowatthours.
That's quick progress, but it still only leaves solar as 14% of the total share of renewables electricity, and even less (roughly 3%) of all electricity generated. There's a long way to go.
