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Sununu Vetoes 2019 Net Metering Bill, But Compromise Could Come From New Plans

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Governor Chris Sununu on Monday vetoed a bill on net energy metering that was held over from last year's legislative session.

It’s his first veto of the 2020 session, on top of a record number in 2019.

The bipartisan bill was one of lawmakers' latest attempts to increase the limit on how much renewable energy towns and businesses can generate themselves and use to save money.

Democrats had amended the 2019 bill in an attempt to win Sununu over. But the governor says in his veto message that he's still worried the bill will cost low-income ratepayers too much. Advocates for the plan dispute that argument.

The veto is not unexpected – this is the third year in a row that Sununu has vetoed a proposal like this. But the governor says he still wants to find a compromise on the long-debated issue. 

It could come from several newly introduced net metering bills that are still in a House committee. Two of those bills have Sununu’s backing.

Annie has covered the environment, energy, climate change and the Seacoast region for NHPR since 2017. She leads the newsroom's climate reporting project, By Degrees.
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