Your utility matters as much as your solar panels.

Start with the bill, not a statewide rate assumption

Keep your utility name, rate schedule, service address and usage visible when requesting a review. If generation and delivery appear under different providers, include both. Two homes in California can have different billing arrangements and different suitability for the same solar design.

Our electric-bill checklist shows what to find before you upload.

Understand the export question

For PG&E, SCE and SDG&E, the CPUC describes a net billing tariff that the utilities call the Solar Billing Plan. Your applicable arrangement depends on the project and interconnection history. Do not assume every exported kWh receives the same value as electricity purchased from the utility.

Ask the proposal reviewer to identify the tariff used in the model, the export assumptions and whether an existing solar arrangement would be affected by the proposed work. Confirm current terms with the utility.

Know which organization handles which part of the bill

A community choice aggregator can supply generation while the investor-owned utility continues delivery and other utility services. That is different from a municipal utility operating under its own applicable solar arrangements. The CPUC explains the CCA structure.

For an SCE customer with a CCA or direct-access provider, SCE’s Solar Billing Plan FAQ distinguishes delivery credits from the corresponding generation credits handled by the generation provider. Confirm the rules for your own providers rather than applying one generic export-credit assumption.

Put these questions beside the estimate

• Which utility rate plan and usage history did you model?
• How are exported energy and remaining utility charges treated?
• Does the estimate assume a battery, and how is it operated?
• What happens if actual usage or utility rates differ?
• Does existing solar or a planned system change require a separate utility review?

These are review questions, not a forecast of your future bill. We do not promise a zero utility bill or a fixed savings percentage.

Keep the consumer guide in the decision

The CPUC publishes a California Solar Consumer Protection Guide. Read the applicable guide and the actual contract before proceeding, and take time to understand financing and provider responsibilities. Our quote request does not commit you to an installation agreement.

Summit National Energy confirms service availability by address and program. We do not imply that a guide about a utility establishes coverage at every address in its territory.

Already have solar? Treat a change as its own review

Before adding panels, replacing equipment or adding storage, identify the existing interconnection arrangement and the exact proposed change. Ask the utility and responsible installer whether the change affects the tariff, interconnection application or system requirements.

This guide does not determine grandfathering, a modification threshold or eligibility for your home. Bring the existing agreement and proposed scope to the review and use the utility’s current written requirements. That is more useful than assuming every expansion follows the same rule.