Program Description

The City of Vernon's Solar program promotes customer adoption of residential and commercial solar photovoltaic systems.

Announcement 
As of January 2025, VPU has officially met its NEM obligations and the program is no longer accepting new applications. Customers with existing interconnected solar generation facilities that are already enrolled in one of the three existing NM electric rate schedules (NM-Small, NM-Medium, NM-Large) will not be affected.

Under the California Public Utilities Code (Section 2827), electric utilities are required to implement a net energy metering (NEM) program to compensate customers for excess energy generated on-site by eligible solar photovoltaic systems.

The net energy metering program was to be made available to eligible customer-generators on a first come, first served basis until the generating capacity of on-site solar photovoltaic systems has reached five percent of the utility’s aggregate peak demand. 

 Eligibility Criteria

1. The installed system size must be less than or equal to the customer’s average peak electricity demand over the last 12-month period.
2. The maximum system size installed under the Program is 1 Megawatt (MW).
3. Customers with an active VPU electric account in good standing are eligible to participate in the Program.
4. All components in the solar photovoltaic system must be new and unused, and have not previously been placed in service in any other location, or for any other application.
5. Solar photovoltaic systems must meet all of the requirements listed in the "City of Vernon Guidelines" for interconnection of customer-owned distributed generation.
6. Solar photovoltaic systems must be installed with power production meters to monitor and measure the system’s performance and the quantity of electricity generated by the system.
7. The solar photovoltaic system must be located on the same premise of the end-use customer, where the customer's electric demand is located.
8. The solar photovoltaic system must be connected to the City of Vernon’s electrical distribution system.
9. The solar photovoltaic system must be installed in conformance with the manufacturer’s specifications and in compliance with all applicable electrical and building code standards.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. What are some considerations before solar installation?
   • Ask for the solar provider's Contractors State License Board (CSLB) license number. The CSLB license must be active and in classification C-46 (Solar Contractor), C-10 (Electrical Contractor), or B (General Building Contractor) in order to be valid.  
2. Is Vernon Public Utilities (VPU) affiliated with any solar system installers?
   • VPU does not endorse or have partnerships or affiliations with any solar installation companies. It is entirely the customer’s responsibility to choose a contractor. The utility recommends getting at least 3 quotes and calling references to ensure the best pricing and customer experience for your project.
3. Does my solar system qualify for a federal or state income tax credit?
   • Tax situations vary among different customers and tax laws are subject to change, VPU does not provide tax advice. Please check with your tax advisor or visit the Database

     of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency.

Documents

1. Solar Flow Chart
2. Solar Application
3. City of Vernon Guidelines
4. Interconnection Agreement
5. Net Metering (Rate schedule closed to new applicants)
6. Net Metering - Small (Rate schedule closed to new applicants)
7. Net Metering - Large (Rate schedule closed to new applicants)

Free viewers are required for some of the attached documents.
They can be downloaded by clicking on the icons below.

Acrobat Reader Windows Media Player Word Viewer Excel Viewer PowerPoint Viewer