D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine’s office filed a complaint Wednesday against Pepco for allegedly mishandling community solar energy projects.
As a result, the OAG said, 6,800 D.C. households were potentially overcharged on their monthly bills — including 5,000 low-income households. It also said that in the process, Pepco could be undermining the city’s clean energy goals.
“The District has tried to work with Pepco for nearly two years to address problems with community solar programs and ensure 6,800 households — including thousands of low-income residents — get the solar energy discounts they are owed. Unfortunately, these programs are still not working as intended, and residents continue to get overcharged on their electric bills,” Racine said in a statement.
“Enough is enough. We have heard from numerous D.C. residents who are rightly fed up with Pepco’s seeming inability, intentional or otherwise, to allow for consumer choice and transition to clean energy, as required by law.”
The OAG’s complaint was filed with the Public Service Commission. It aims to force Pepco to provide relief for residents who were deprived of promised credits on their electric bills, compensate community solar project owners and pay penalties for legal violations, according to Racine’s office.
A Pepco spokesperson said the company is reviewing the complaint.
“We are committed to helping the District achieve its leading climate goals and continue to support our customers with interconnecting their local solar into the local energy grid and helping to connect our customers with community solar projects,” the spokesperson said in a statement.
They added that Pepco has recently partnered with NHT Ingenuity Power on a community solar facility at their Benning Service Center to save qualified households money.
