Los Angeles Dept. of Water & Power
Solar on LADWP: the city's own rules
LADWP is the country's largest city-owned power utility and sets its own solar rules. Here's how its net metering, tiers and hookup steps actually work.
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By the Golden Hour Energy editorial team. How we research and check our guides
LADWP runs its own net metering program, so the solar rules in the City of Los Angeles aren't the NEM 3.0 rules that SCE and SDG&E homes follow. Under LADWP's guidelines, what you export is netted against what you use each billing period, and any excess becomes a credit on your account (LADWP NEM guidelines). That's a very different deal from the few-cent export values on NEM 3.0, and it changes how a Los Angeles system should be built.
A city utility, not a CPUC one
LADWP calls itself the nation's largest municipal power utility. It serves more than 1.6 million electric customers, about four million people in Los Angeles, plus nearly 6,000 customers in the Owens Valley (LADWP). It answers to the city's Board of Water and Power Commissioners, not the California Public Utilities Commission. That's why NEM 3.0, a CPUC decision, doesn't reach it.
A Los Angeles mailing address doesn't mean you're on LADWP. Many neighboring cities and unincorporated parts of LA County are on Edison. If your bill says SCE, our SCE page is the right one.
How LADWP net metering works
LADWP's published Net Energy Metering guidelines set out the rules (LADWP):
- Netting each billing period. Exports offset what you pull from the grid. If you use more than you export, the difference is billed at your current rate.
- Credits roll forward. LADWP applies any credit balance to each later bill, except taxes and minimum charges, until it's used up.
- No payout at the end. The guidelines describe no annual cash-out. If credit remains when you close your account, it's set to zero.
- Size limit and eligible rates. The program covers solar systems up to 1 MW on schedules including the residential R-1 rates.
The practical lesson: credit you never use is worth nothing, so a system sized to cover your actual use is the target. An oversized system just builds a balance you can't cash.
| Topic | LADWP net metering | NEM 3.0 (SCE, SDG&E) |
|---|---|---|
| Set by | LADWP and the City of Los Angeles | The CPUC |
| Exports | Netted against use each billing period | Credited at hourly export values |
| Extra credit | Rolls forward; zeroed if you close the account | Varies by utility tariff |
| Battery's main job | Backup, plus time-of-use shifting on R-1B | Shifting solar into the evening |
R-1A: the standard tiered plan
Most LADWP homes are on R-1A, which charges by tier: the more you use in a month, the more each additional kWh costs. Tier sizes depend on your zone. In Zone 1, the first 350 kWh are Tier 1, the next 700 kWh are Tier 2 and anything above 1,050 kWh is Tier 3. Zone 2, the hotter areas, gets bigger blocks of 500, 1,000 and 1,500 kWh. LADWP's high season is June through September (LADWP).
- Tier 1Jan to Mar 202624.8¢
- Tier 1Oct to Dec 202627.3¢
- Tier 3Jul to Sep 202641.0¢
Tiers matter for solar because panels take off your most expensive kWh first. If a hot summer pushes you into Tier 3, every kWh your panels cover is one you don't buy at about 41¢. Prices also move every quarter: LADWP's base rates date to July 1, 2019, and adjustment factors change each January, April, July and October (LADWP). Tier 1 in January to March went from 22.3¢ in 2025 to 24.8¢ in 2026 under those adjustments.
R-1B: time-of-use with an afternoon peak
LADWP's time-of-use plan has a peak that sits earlier in the day than SCE's or SDG&E's. High peak is 1 to 5 p.m. on weekdays, about 20 hours a week. Low peak is 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 5 to 8 p.m. on weekdays. Everything else, including all weekend, is base (LADWP). In July to September 2026, R-1B high peak is about 35.1¢ per kWh and base is about 26.5¢, with a $12 monthly service charge (LADWP).
- WeekdaysBase: 0:00 to 10:00; Low peak: 10:00 to 13:00; High peak: 13:00 to 17:00; Low peak: 17:00 to 20:00; Base: 20:00 to 24:00
- WeekendsBase: 0:00 to 24:00
That overlap is unusual. On SCE and SDG&E, the expensive hours start as the sun goes down. On R-1B, the most expensive hours are the ones your panels cover best. Whether R-1B beats R-1A for your home depends on your usage, so ask the installer to run both.
Incentives on LADWP
LADWP's old Solar Incentive Program closed to new applications on December 31, 2018 (LADWP). Today LADWP runs Solar Rooftops, a program meant to widen solar access for qualified residential customers (LADWP solar programs), and for batteries it points customers to the state's SGIP for income-qualified households (LADWP). Where SGIP stands now is in our battery guide.
Getting connected in Los Angeles
Hookup on LADWP runs through two city departments. LADWP's guidelines lay out the steps (LADWP), and its Connection Center coordinates inspection and the meter at (213) 367-6937.
- Step 1. Apply to LADWPYour installer applies on LADWP's Solar Automated Meter Spot site (ladwp.com/nem) and gets a work request number. Systems under 10 kW with no service upgrade or battery can be fast-tracked.
- Step 2. City building permitThe installer pulls a permit from the Department of Building and Safety (LADBS). When LADBS finals the permit, it releases the project to LADWP.
- Step 3. InspectionsLADBS inspects the permit work. LADWP does its own solar inspection, plus an electric service inspection for systems 10 kW and up. Larger systems also sign an interconnection agreement.
- Step 4. New meter, then onLADWP installs a two-way net meter and places the system in service. Until then, LADWP says a system may not be operated and may be locked.
LADWP customers aren't among the utilities whose customers must sign the CPUC's Solar Consumer Protection Guide, but state contractor licensing and cancellation rights still apply. Both are on our page of claims to walk away from.