On August 14th, Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy signed legislation that makes community solar projects in the state possible. SB 152 will allow Alaskans to subscribe to community owned solar arrays that do not belong to their homes or property, providing clean energy for 260000 Alaskans living in rental homes and 79000 people living below the federal poverty line for the first time.

This bipartisan bill is Sponsored by Senators Bill Vilkowski, Forrest Dunbar, Elvi Gray Jackson, Scott Kavassey, and Representatives Ashley Carrick, Stanley Wright, Cliff Gro, Andy Josephson, Alice Calvin, Donna Mills, and Calvin Schrage.
This legislative victory, following the announcement of Earth Day by the US Environmental Protection Agency, has led the applicant, the Alaska Energy Agency, along with the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, to receive $62.5 million in funding and provide solar energy to low-income and vulnerable communities as a benefit for "urban, residential, and community scale rural projects across Alaska.
Phil White, a policy analyst at the Alaska Public Interest Research Organization, said, "This is a logical piece of legislation that will allow Alaskans to enter the fastest-growing sector of the renewable energy industry. With huge funds from private financing and federal incentives, the bipartisan Energy Conservation Act will enable Alaskans to accelerate the deployment of low-cost and clean power generation methods, further diversify power sources, and save consumers a lot of energy costs. This is a good day for Alaska!
This is a critical moment for Alaska's energy transition - as concerns about the Cook Bay gas crisis intensify, Alaska's utilities are seeking to diversify their energy sources through renewable energy. Community solar energy also provides opportunities for building stronger and more resilient power grids. Most Alaskans support the development of solar energy, but most people are unable to benefit from distributed renewable energy generation. Community solar energy will change this.
Shantar de Alcuaz, the joint executive director of the Alaska Center, said, "The Alaska Center has a firsthand experience of the need for community energy reform. Through our Solarize project, we have heard the question multiple times: What if I am a tenant? What if I cannot afford to install solar energy myself? Ultimately, all Alaskans along the railway will be able to subscribe to community energy installation services and benefit from low-cost renewable energy. Alaskans can decide to access or create community energy - which will bring us closer to a fairer energy environment where all Alaskans can access clean energy.
In the past decade, the number of countries that have formulated policies to support third-party sharing or community solar energy has expanded from a few to 22, including Washington D.C. So far, a total installed capacity of 6.6 gigawatts has been installed, and WoodMackenzie's latest outlook for the US community solar market predicts that 14 gigawatts of solar power capacity will be installed nationwide by the end of 2028.