Speak out against Roll-Back of State Climate Goals!

November 12th 2025 | 12:00 am

On Thursday November 13, House Bill H.3469 was reported out favorably by the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy. LexCAN stands firmly against this disastrous bill, which would roll back Massachusetts Climate Goals and gut MassSave. The most important thing we can do for climate action in this state right now is call your representative and tell them how important it is that this bill not be passed! It is expecting a vote on the House Floor on Wednesday November 19.

Here is a section-by-section summary, as provided by Mark Sandeen.

H.3469 “An act relative to energy affordability, clean power, and economic competitiveness”

Mass Save, DPU, and Commonwealth emissions targets

 

Section 1 – Would eliminate Massachusetts interim 2030 emissions targets.

 

Section 2 – Makes Mass Save emissions reductions goals non-binding and advisory through 2030 and requires that Mass Save programs do not adversely affect affordability for residents or competitiveness for businesses.

 

Section 3 – Creates an affordability and competitiveness standard that all state entities must adhere to before complying with any greenhouse gas emission limits.

 

Section 4 – Requires the DPU to limit the scope and scale of greenhouse gas emission reduction programs to eliminate any impact on gas or electric bills.

 

Section 5, 6, 8  – Removes requirement for the DPU to consider the impact of emissions when calculating cost effectiveness. Requires Mass Save to focus only on energy efficiency in programs.

 

Section 9 – Removes DPU requirement to consider emissions when calculating cost effectiveness. Removes incentives for electrification. Requires proof of weatherization prior to receiving a Mass Save incentive.

 

Section 10 – EEAC can no longer consider benefits of demand management, electrification, and decarbonization in approval of Mass Save programs.

 

Section 11 – Removes Mass Save emission reporting requirements through 2030.

Section 61 – LDCs and EDCs must perform customer bill impact analysis for any proposed programs associated with emissions reductions, clean energy, solar, workforce development of electrification.

Section 92 – Establishes immunity for the Commonwealth if the greenhouse gas emissions targets are not met.

Section 94 – Prevents municipalities participating in fossil fuel free demonstration programs from receiving Mass Save incentives for construction of all-electric homes.

Section 97 – Sets a $4 billion budget cap for Mass Save 2028 – 2030 plan.

 

Section 98 – Cuts Mass Save budget for 2025 – 2027 plan from $4.5 billion to $4.17 billion.

Solar 

Section 22 – 33 – Establishes additional requirements for the solar industry.

Requires solar installers to obtain state registration.

Requires solar sales people to register and pay an annual registration fee.

Solar customers have 5 days to cancel contracts without any financial penalty.

Solar installers must provide a written disclosure form developed by DOER and OCABR.

Solar installers must notify all customers within 90 days if the company is solar to another company.

Section 73 – Raises municipal net metering hosting capacity from 10 MW to 20 MW.

 

Section 74 – Grants municipal behind the meter projects the same exemption as other BTM net metering projects.

 

Section 75 – Lowers net metering rate to supply net metering rate.

Section 78 – Exempts portable solar from certain interconnection requirements.

 

Section 99 – Effective date for solar consumer protections.

Section 100, 101, 102 – Sets effective dates for automated solar permitting provision. (Not sure where the automated solar permitting provision is included in this bill)

Nuclear 

Section 80 – The equivalent to Section 45 from H.4144 – Repeals the “Nuclear Power and Waste Disposal Voter Approval and Legislative Certification Act”

Procurement

Section 12, 14 & 21 – Creates a new division of clean energy procurement within DOER allowing DOER to procure solar, wind, anerobic digestion, hydropower and nuclear power. DOER can procure energy services such as energy storage and demand response. This replaces Section 83 procurements.

Sets targets of 10 GW solar and 10 GW offshore wind by 2040.

(State targets are 27 to 32 GW of solar and 24 GW of offshore wind by 2050.)

Section 83 – Extends 5,600 MW offshore wind deadline from 2027 to 2029.

 

Section 84, 85, 86, 87 – Amends offshore wind procurement process.

 

Section 88 – Amends 83E storage procurement process preferences.

Low and Moderate Income

Section 44 – Repeals existing low-income discount rates.

Section 77 – Removes moderate income discount.

Section 79 – Establishes a new (unspecified) low income discount rate.

Utilities 

Section 39, 54, 62, 63, 64 – Allows electric distribution companies to procure energy supply under long term contracts. This sounds innocuous, but is anything but. It would impose rate increases on electric rate payers to pay for gas pipeline expansion. 

 

Section 40 – Allows utility supply contracts of varying lengths.

 

Section 41 – Requires breakdown of system charges on customer bills.

Section 50 – Prohibits gas and electric utilities from seeking rate recovery from memberships, lobbying, contributions to political candidates, campaigns or PACs, any marketing or other costs associated with programs not regulated by the DPU, travel for board of directors, trustees, or advisory councils.

Section 57 – Requires ESMPs to include comprehensive load management and VPP plans. ESMPs must include 5 and 10 year load reduction plans and integrate flexible interconnection processes.

Section 60 – Requires gas companies to file schedules at least every 5 years (vs current 10 year requirement).

Section 79

Allows gas utilities to build, own and operate thermal heat loops in their existing territories.

Requires gas companies to develop a just transition plan for complying with climate legislation.

Requires EDCs to offer a flexible interconnection program for new customer loads and to maximize DERs, while minimizing interconnection costs.

EDCs must offer interconnection for V2G systems at residential buildings.

Section 90 – EDCs must offer flexible interconnection programs.

 

Section 91 – Requires EDCs to include utility load management and VPP planning in ESMPs

Section 96 – Allows high voltage transmission lines by right along highways and roadways, except as necessary to protect public safety or the proper function of a trunk highway.

 

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