On July 29, 2016, the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (the “DPU”) issued its Order Announcing Notification Date and Directives to Distribution Companies in its proceeding under 16-64-D, establishing the Net Metering “Notification Date” as September 26, 2016. Pursuant to Chapter 75 of the Acts of 2016, D.P.U. 16-64-C, and as confirmed by this Order, there are three strict criteria that must be met for a private net metering project to receive net metering credits under the old regime:

1. Submission of an Application for Cap Allocation (ACA) to the Massachusetts System of Assurance of Net Metering Eligibility (System of Assurance) for a net metering cap allocation prior to the Notification Date of September 26, 2016 by 2:00pm;
2. Receipt of confirmation from the System of Assurance Administrator that the application (ACA) is complete; and
3. Receipt of a ACA cap allocation by January 8, 2017.

In its Order, the DPU determined that “the best option to result in a smooth transition to a stable and equitable solar net metering market” was to align the timing for transition to the new net metering credits policy with the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER)’s SREC-II program. In selecting September 26, 2016 as the “Notification Date”, the DPU calculated the maximum amount of time that could be required to obtain a cap allocation on or before January 8, 2017, which was determined to be 70 business days. In addition, the September 26 date is exactly 60 calendar days after the Order’s announcement of the Notification Date. In consideration of these two timelines, the DPU determined that this date would provide enough time for systems to plan for, apply for, and receive a net metering cap allocation under the existing framework.

For more information on the current and new net metering regulation in the state of Massachusetts, please visit our previous blog post on the topic.