In several states, Republican lawmakers are taking the lead on an unexpected policy priority: encouraging more community solar.

This year, Republicans in Georgia, Iowa, Missouri, and Ohio have sponsored bills to spur the growth of this shared renewable energy resource in their states. Community solar installations, which are typically 1 to 5 megawatts, or up to 30 acres, allow households to reap the benefits of cheaper, clean power without putting panels on their own roofs. And customers who subscribe to these projects can save money on their electricity bills.

While the Georgia Homegrown Solar Act of 2025 is off the table now that the Peach State’s legislative session has ended, and further action on the Missouri House measure has been postponed, the proposed laws in Iowa (HF 404) and Ohio (HB 15 and SB 2) remain in play.

Twenty-five states have already adopted policies to enable community solar, according to an April report from the NC Clean Energy Technology Center. Nationwide, shared solar had its biggest growth spurt ever in 2024, rising 35% from 2023 to reach a cumulative 8.6 gigawatts of installed capacity, according to Wood Mackenzie. Now, the idea is gaining momentum among conservatives.

Not only are GOP lawmakers introducing and signing on to more community solar bills, but other local Republican stakeholders such as chambers of commerce, landowners, and conservative policy groups are also voicing their support, according to the national trade association Coalition for Community Solar Access.The libertarian group Americans for Prosperity is backing Iowa’s HF 404 — alongside Walmart. Last year, in Alaska, several GOP legislators voted for a community solar bill, and the state’s Republican governor signed it into law.

“We’re starting to see … this groundswell that’s happening,” said Matthew Hargarten, vice president of government and public affairs at the Coalition for Community Solar Access.

That Republicans are advocating for solar at the local level comes as something of a surprise given the federal government’s ongoing opposition to clean energy. On Capitol Hill, GOP lawmakers are weighing the repeal of federal tax credits for renewables, and the Trump administration has attempted to claw back billions of dollars Congress authorized for solar and other clean energy projects. At the same time, the executive branch claims its actions are ​“ensuring America’s future is marked by energy growth and abundance – not scarcity.”

So why is community solar finding fans among some local Republican lawmakers?

These projects brim with benefits, including ones that tap into the conservative principles of free markets and individual property rights, according to advocates.

Community solar policy can attract private investment from third-party developers of these projects, opening up competition in the energy-generation market, which is often dominated by monopoly utilities. All the recently introduced Republican-backed bills would create this competitive structure by allowing third-party-owned projects where they were previously barred, the Coalition for Community Solar Access pointed out.

Companies that own shared solar installations pay property taxes that help fund local schools and emergency services. And these projects provide energy close to where it’s being consumed, which can reduce the costs of building out grid infrastructure to deliver power to far-flung customers.

Plus, community solar can help farmers keep their agricultural land in production. Farmers and ranchers who need to let a few acres lie fallow to regenerate the soil can lease that plot to earn a passive, stable income for 20 or 30 years.

Some of those reasons explain why the American Legislative Exchange Council, the national conservative group known for packaging model legislation for policymakers, supports building community solar and combining it with agriculture, a practice known as agrivoltaics.

“[American Legislative Exchange Council] members have long abided by the fundamental principles of individual property rights and have worked to remove regulatory barriers that impede private landowners from utilizing the value of their property for energy projects, whether they are for solar, wind, fracking, biofuels, or other sources,” Jake Morabito, senior director of the group’s energy, environment, and agriculture task force, said in a statement to Canary Media.

Shared solar also boosts local economies. On average, 5 megawatts of community solar delivers $14 million in local economic activity and supports nearly 100 jobs, according to a nationwide review of economic impact reports released this month by the Coalition for Community Solar Access. At scale, the organization notes, that equates to $2.8 billion in local economic activity and more than 18,000 jobs (direct, indirect, and induced) per gigawatt of new installed capacity.

Plus, the energy bill savings offered by community solar have obvious appeal on both sides of the aisle. Developers often guarantee subscribers a 5% to 20% discount on the energy cost. For example, with a $100 investment, a subscriber could buy $120 worth of electricity.

Each of the state bills currently being considered is tailored to the state’s regulatory environment, but all allow customers to save on power bills.

“Ultimately, for me, it was giving Iowan consumers a choice,” said Iowa state Rep. Hans Wilz, a Republican, in a March interview on why he introduced a community solar bill. Not everyone can afford to put solar panels on their roof, he explained: ​“This is a way for all Iowans to be able to participate in a solar program.”

That’s a far cry from a common refrain that Lori Saine said she often heard from fellow Republicans during her tenures as a state representative and local official in Colorado: “‘You like China and Biden if you like solar panels.’”

As a commissioner in Weld County, Colorado, Saine helped update the jurisdiction’s code to allow community solar projects, and as a member of the American Legislative Exchange Council, she introduced the group’s model resolution supporting shared solar.

To be sure, even today community solar can be ​“a political buzz saw for some Republicans, especially if they’re in deep red districts,” which tend to be rural, Saine said. But once people ​“save some money on their energy bills, suddenly the tune changes really, really fast.”

As for whether the Republican-backed draft laws will pass, ​“it’s impossible to say,” said Hargarten, with the Coalition for Community Solar Access. Utilities consistently oppose such legislation, according to the group. Still, here’s one encouraging sign: A Montana shared-solar bill cleared both Republican-controlled chambers this month and now awaits the governor’s signature.

We’ll know soon enough the fate of some of these bills. Iowa lawmakers go home May 2, and Missouri legislators follow soon after on May 16. Ohio keeps legislating until Dec. 31. 

The rising support for community solar among Republicans is ​“a kind of awakening,” Saine of Colorado said.

“It’s not a partisan issue if you’re generating an electron, and you’re doing it safer, more effectively, and cheaper, and then delivering that product to consumers who really, really need it — which is, by the way, everyone,” she noted. ​“That’s a win-win.”