Community Shared Solar in Massachusetts: How to Participate Without Rooftop Panels

Community shared solar — also called community solar — allows Massachusetts residents, renters, businesses, and municipalities to subscribe to a share of a remote solar array and receive bill credits proportional to that share's electricity generation. This page covers how the program is structured, who qualifies, what the subscription process involves, and where the boundaries of this model begin and end. Understanding these mechanics matters because community solar is one of the primary pathways to solar savings for the roughly 36 percent of Massachusetts households that rent or have rooftops unsuitable for direct installation (Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, 2023 Massachusetts Community Shared Solar Program Overview).

Definition and scope

Community shared solar in Massachusetts operates under the Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target (SMART) program, administered by the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (DPU) and the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER). Under the SMART framework, a solar facility — typically sized between 25 kilowatts and 2 megawatts — is built at a single location. Subscribers receive a portion of the facility's output credited against their utility bill rather than installing panels on their own property.

The program applies to customers of the three investor-owned electric utilities in Massachusetts: Eversource, National Grid, and Unitil. Municipal light plant (MLP) customers operate under separate utility governance and are not covered by the SMART program's community solar provisions; MLP territory falls outside this scope. The geographic limitation is strict — a subscriber must be in the same utility territory as the host array, though not necessarily the same town or county.

For a broader foundation on how solar energy flows through the state grid, the conceptual overview of Massachusetts solar energy systems provides essential background on generation, interconnection, and billing mechanics.

Scope limitations this page does not address:
- On-site residential or commercial rooftop installations (covered separately at Residential vs. Commercial Solar in Massachusetts)
- Virtual net metering programs outside the SMART community solar framework
- Federal tax credit eligibility at the subscriber level (addressed at Federal Investment Tax Credit in Massachusetts)

How it works

Community solar under SMART functions through a subscription model tied to a specific facility's SMART incentive block. The process moves through discrete phases:

1. Facility development and SMART approval — A project developer applies for a SMART capacity block through DOER. Each block carries a fixed incentive rate (in dollars per kilowatt-hour) that declines as blocks fill, creating a step-down tariff structure (DOER SMART Program Tariff).
2. Subscriber enrollment — Residents or businesses sign a subscription agreement, typically for 1 to 20 years, for a defined kilowatt portion of the array. Most residential subscriptions range from 1 kW to 25 kW.
3. Generation and credit allocation — Once operational, the array generates electricity delivered to the grid. The utility calculates each subscriber's proportional share and applies a bill credit — a monetary reduction on the subscriber's monthly electric bill.
4. Net billing settlement — Credits appear as a line item on the subscriber's utility bill. If credits exceed the monthly bill, excess typically rolls forward as a credit balance; policies on rollover caps vary by utility tariff.
5. Subscription portability — Subscriptions can often be transferred or cancelled subject to contract terms; some projects offer waitlists and reassignment provisions.

The bill credit rate per kilowatt-hour is not identical to the retail electricity rate — it is set by the specific SMART block rate and the applicable utility's net metering credit structure, which differ between Eversource, National Grid, and Unitil territories. Details on how net metering credit rates interact with community solar billing appear at Net Metering in Massachusetts.

Common scenarios

Renters and condo owners represent the most straightforward use case. Because no roof access or landlord permission is required, a renter signs directly with a community solar provider, assigns their utility account number, and begins receiving credits — typically within 30 to 90 days of the array reaching commercial operation.

Low-income households can access enhanced bill credit rates under the SMART low-income adder, which provides a supplemental incentive per kilowatt-hour above the standard block rate. The Massachusetts Low-Income Community Shared Solar program (LICSS), administered by MassCEC, specifically targets income-eligible customers in Eversource and National Grid territories. Program details and eligibility thresholds are outlined at Low-Income Solar Programs in Massachusetts.

Small businesses and nonprofits can subscribe to commercial-scale allocations. Nonprofits that cannot use federal tax credits (because they are tax-exempt) find community solar particularly relevant since savings are delivered through bill credits rather than tax mechanism. This contrasts with owned rooftop systems, where the 30 percent federal Investment Tax Credit under IRC §48 is a primary financial driver.

Municipal and school accounts may subscribe as part of broader clean energy procurement. Municipal solar projects in Massachusetts often blend community solar subscriptions with owned assets for portfolio diversification.

Decision boundaries

Choosing community solar over rooftop installation — or vice versa — depends on four primary variables:

A subscriber to a community solar project does not own the solar renewable energy certificates (SRECs or SMART incentive payments) generated by that array — those belong to the project developer unless explicitly contractually assigned. This distinction matters for organizations tracking Scope 2 emissions reductions, because REC ownership determines whether the electricity qualifies as "renewable" under reporting frameworks such as the EPA's Green Power Partnership. Further details on certificate ownership appear at Massachusetts Solar Renewable Energy Certificates.

Permitting and inspection requirements under the Massachusetts State Building Code (780 CMR) and the Massachusetts Electrical Code (527 CMR) apply at the array site, not the subscriber's address. Subscribers bear no permitting obligation. The array developer is responsible for all interconnection filings with the utility and local authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) approvals.

The regulatory context for Massachusetts solar energy systems provides the full statutory and administrative framework — including DPU docket history for SMART — that governs both the array operators and the credit-billing mechanics subscribers depend on.

For a comprehensive map of all program types and ownership structures available in Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Solar Authority home aggregates program categories, incentive summaries, and utility-specific guidance across the state.

References

• Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources — SMART Program
• Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (DPU)
• Massachusetts Clean Energy Center — Community Shared Solar
• Massachusetts Clean Energy Center — Low-Income Community Shared Solar (LICSS)
• EPA Green Power Partnership — REC Guidance
• Massachusetts 780 CMR State Building Code
• Massachusetts 527 CMR Electrical Code