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Community Solar

EnergySmart CNY is excited to announce its collaboration with Solar Simplified to provide electricity bill savings and support clean energy in CNY. Community solar is a New York State regulated program. Our partnership with Solar Simplified provides access to savings of 10% or 20% on your electricity bill. Participants “subscribe” to a portion of a local solar array and receive a guaranteed discount on the electricity bill for the electricity produced by the solar panels.

Signing up is easy! There’s just a couple things to find:

  1. Know your utility account number. This will be on your most recent paper bill or you can log in to your utility provider to find it.
  2. If your household received SNAP, HEAP, EAP, TANF, SSI, or EmPower+ in the past 12 months, your award letter or utility bill showing the HEAP or EAP benefit unlocks the 20% benefit through Solar Simplified.
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CLICK To Get Community Solar!

Who Qualifies?

  • National Grid, NYSEG, or RG&E electric customer
  • Renters, Homeowners, Businesses, Multifamily Buildings, Municipalities
  • All income levels (extra bill savings may be available for lower income households)
  • Do not currently have rooftop solar panels

Learn More About Community Solar

Homeowners, renters, businesses, and multifamily buildings can all access the benefits of solar power without installing panels on their property. Community solar projects generate renewable energy on behalf of multiple customers, who receive credits on their monthly electric bills for their share of the clean electricity that’s produced.

By joining a community solar project, you can lower your electric bill and reduce your carbon footprint. Learn more and sign up to access your savings!

Frequently Asked Questions

You have questions. We get it. Here are answers that Solar Simplified, the City of Syracuse, and ourselves have compiled.

If I have community solar already, can I switch?

You may already have a community solar provider, but one that only provides a 5% benefit, or has a separate bill rather than consolidated billing, and want to switch. You can do so, but you must initiate the process with your current provider. A community solar provider can only enroll a customer after the customer notifies their current provider, the current provider notifies the utility, and the utility exhausts all generated credits. Until all of that happens, our provider simply receives a rejection from the utility stating you are with another provider. If you want to switch, start by contacting your community solar provider.

 

If I have solar on my roof, can I sign up?

Sadly, no. We meet people who have solar on their roofs but not enough to cover their full electric needs who are interested in community solar. Unfortunately, utilities do not let you have both on-site solar and subscribe to community solar.

My household is low-to-moderate income. How do I qualify for the 20% benefit?

The 20% benefit is limited to particular solar projects and depends on availability. If you verify your eligibility at initial enrollment, you may be placed into a 10% project for now but will be prequalified and moved into a 20% project as soon as one becomes available. 

Household income for the 20% benefit is proven by uploading any ONE of the following award letters dated within the past 12 months:

  • HEAP (Home Energy Assistance Program, through OTDA, the NYS Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance)
  • EAP (Energy Affordability Program, often an automatic enrollment for HEAP recipients; it will be a discount on your utility bill)
  • TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families through OTDA)
  • SSI (Supplemental Security Income)
  • EmPower+ (home energy performance upgrades through NYSERDA – has slightly more generous income limits)
  • WAP (Weatherization Assistance Program)

If you did not have any of these documents available when you signed up, you can send them later to Solar Simplified and they will add you to a 20% project as soon as one is available. Text docs to (888) 420-9831 or email cs@solarsimplified.com, or reach out to an EnergySmart CNY Energy Advisor for assistance.  

 

Will I get a separate bill?

No. Some community solar providers use dual-billing, where a discount applied on your utility bill but then your subscription amount came as a separate bill in the mail. Our program and provider uses only consolidated billing, where you will see the benefit and the subscription cost right on your utility bill. The subscription will always be 10-20% less than the benefit, saving you money on your bill. 

Will I need to recertify my household income?

No. Once you are signed up with a 20% project, that is yours for the length of the contract, up to 25 years (you can cancel at any time).  

What's this fee on my utility bill? I thought you said there are no fees?

From your wallet’s point of view, there are no additional cost or fees.  That’s the important part.

Your utility bill will look a little different in order to get you the benefit of community solar. The utility is essentially passing through a portion of what you would normally pay them, to the community solar provider as the subscription payment in order to get your solar credits. That payment will always be 80-90% of the amount credited as a benefit to your bill from community solar on the electricity supply and delivery charges, giving you a savings worth 10-20% of the solar generation on your bill overall. On National Grid bills, the subscription is listed as a “CDG Subscription Fee.” We do not know why they chose to add the word fee.  If you take the time to do the math, your utility bill will be always be lower than if you did not have the community solar credits. Here’s a National Grid bill example.  

 

 

Community Solar Partner Selection

In the autumn of 2025 EnergySmart CNY issued an RFP for local community solar partners. We evaluated the current offerings of each, capacity, their marketing methods, contract terms, and reviewed references. EnergySmart CNY chose Solar Simplified as our community solar provider partner based on these criteria. Solar Simplified also has a strong track record of working with municipalities in the region.

View Solar Simplified’s Contract Terms (be sure to pick NY)

How community solar works

  • No solar panels installed on your home
  • Credits applied directly to your utility bill
  • Benefit from local solar projects
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Resources