PG&E’s New Base Charge Explained: Why Solar Owners Are Furious (and What You Can Do About It)

Policy & California NewsPolicy & Market Uncertainty
Written By Katrina Kramer

Rooftop solar array on a California home with a backyard pool, illustrating how high-energy-usage households are affected by PG&E’s new Base Charge.

PG&E is rolling out a new “Base Charge,” and homeowners have a simple, reasonable first reaction:

Is PG&E just creating a new fee they can raise forever?

Short answer: It sure looks like it.

This Base Charge is a fixed monthly cost of about $24 that you pay no matter what. You can’t offset it with solar generation. You can’t reduce it with energy efficiency. Batteries don’t help. Shade studies don’t help. Nothing helps.

It’s the part of your PG&E bill that belongs to PG&E for eternity.

And this is exactly why solar owners are blowing up Reddit right now.

Why This New Charge Has People Talking

PG&E’s new Base Charge is a fixed monthly fee that every customer pays, whether they have solar or not. What’s throwing people off is that it works differently from the rest of the bill: it doesn’t change based on how much energy you use or produce.

For solar households, it can feel counterintuitive because solar is designed to reduce your usage charges, and this fee sits outside of that system. But it doesn’t change the core economics of going solar — the biggest part of your bill is still your grid usage, and solar wipes out most of that.

The real story here isn’t that solar customers are “hit harder.” It’s that PG&E now has a fixed line item they can adjust over time, which is why so many Californians are paying attention to what comes next.

What the Base Charge Actually Changes

Here’s the truth without the PR gloss:

1. Solar exports can’t touch the Base Charge.

Your bill will always start at ~$24/month before any other charges.

2. It shifts cost burden away from high-usage households and onto low-usage and solar households.

If you don’t use a ton of grid power, you feel this more.

3. It creates a structural incentive for PG&E to increase the fixed fee over time.

Volumetric charges (per kWh) get political blowback.

Fixed fees? They slide through rate cases much easier.

4. Solar still delivers savings — just not complete insulation from PG&E anymore.

Panels still wipe out grid usage. Batteries still protect you from outages. But that untouchable base fee adds friction.

Does This Hurt Solar Savings?

A little, yes — but mostly on paper. The Base Charge exists whether you have solar or not, and PG&E will bill you for it no matter what. Solar still wipes out the biggest part of your bill: your grid usage. For most households paying $200–$400 a month, the math is still overwhelmingly in favor of going solar. The Base Charge doesn’t kill the economics; it just reduces how much of PG&E’s bill you can eliminate. You still save, you still protect yourself during outages, and you still take control of your energy future — PG&E just carved out one small piece they always get to keep.

So… Is This the Beginning of PG&E Charging Solar Customers More Every Year

Yes.

This establishes the mechanism.

Before, your bill was almost entirely based on usage, which you could drastically reduce. Now PG&E has a permanent foothold that your solar can’t eliminate — and nothing prevents fixed charges from creeping upward through future rate cases.

It’s not paranoia. It’s math plus history.

What Homeowners Can Actually Do About It

You can’t fight a fixed charge with solar alone.

But you can minimize how often PG&E reaches into your wallet.

This is where grid-optional and off-grid system designs come in.

Option 1: Grid-Optional Systems

These keep your grid connection but dramatically reduce reliance on it.

With solar + batteries sized properly, you can run most of your home most of the year without touching PG&E except when you choose to. You still pay the Base Charge, but your exposure to rate hikes is tiny.

This approach is ideal for:

  • Homeowners who want resilience during outages

  • People tired of PG&E’s ever-changing bills

  • Anyone who wants control without fully disconnecting

  • Rural and semi-rural properties with unstable power

Option 2: True Off-Grid Systems

Going fully off-grid means your home is designed to operate without the utility at all. That usually requires:

  • Solar panels sized for your annual energy needs

  • Big battery capacity to ride through nights and cloudy stretches

  • Correct load calculations so you’re not constantly tripping limits

  • A backup generator for winter storms and long outages

  • The right site conditions (roof or ground space, sun exposure, access for equipment)

Not every home can do this, but demand is exploding for good reason: people want out of PG&E’s rate rollercoaster.

Whether grid-optional or fully off-grid, the theme is the same:

Reduce your exposure to PG&E’s billing structure and put your energy budget back under your control.

Final Word

Solar still makes sense in California. The economics, the protections during outages, the long-term stability — all of it still works.

But PG&E’s new Base Charge changes the rules of the game. Solar customers are right to be frustrated. This fee is the utility’s foothold — the part of your bill they can increase no matter how efficient or independent you become.

Off-grid and grid-optional designs don’t just save money. They give you leverage again.

References

This article was drafted with the assistance of AI and reviewed by the Viva Energy team for accuracy and clarity. If you spot an error or have a suggestion, please let us know at vivainsider@gmail.com.
Katrina Kramer
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