The NEM 2.0 Era Is Over. Here's How Solar Still Wins Under NEM 3.0.
The NEM 2.0 enrollment window closed in April 2026 — every new SCE, PG&E, or SDG&E solar application is now on NEM 3.0. The math changed, but it didn't break: a battery turns low midday export rates into premium evening credits, and LADWP, Glendale, Burbank, and Pasadena homes are exempt from NEM 3.0 entirely. Download the free action plan to see exactly where you stand and how to make the new rules work for you.
Action Plan
NEM 3.0 Action Plan
NEM 3.0 Is the New Reality. Here's What Actually Changed.
- Midday solar exports now earn roughly 8 cents/kWh under NEM 3.0 -- about 75% less than NEM 2.0 paid. Solar-only economics got harder. That's the honest starting point.
- But NEM 3.0's export rates swing hourly -- and evening exports can be worth several times the midday rate. A battery stores your noon sun and sells it back at peak prices. That's the play now.
- Check your utility first: NEM 3.0 only applies to SCE, PG&E, and SDG&E. LADWP, Glendale Water & Power, Burbank Water and Power, and Pasadena Water and Power run their own net-metering programs and are exempt entirely.
- With a right-sized battery, solar + storage payback in LA typically lands in a range that still beats doing nothing -- because the alternative is paying utility rates that keep climbing.
- The real deadlines now: the lease/PPA route to the 30% federal credit ends after 2027, and panel prices are rising on tariffs and supply-chain rules. Waiting isn't free -- it's just a different bill.
- The action plan breaks down your utility, your rate options, and the battery math -- so you know exactly where you stand under the new rules before you talk to anyone.
Action Plan
NEM 3.0 Action Plan
The New Math — and Why Waiting Still Costs You
Under NEM 3.0, a midday kilowatt-hour you export earns roughly 8 cents — but the same energy stored in a battery and exported during the evening peak can be worth several times that. The system design changed: instead of selling cheap at noon, you store at noon and sell at 7pm. That's why nearly every well-designed NEM 3.0 system now pairs solar with storage.
And if you're in LADWP, Glendale, Burbank, or Pasadena territory, none of this applies to you — municipal utilities run their own net-metering programs outside NEM 3.0, which often makes your math better than your SCE neighbors'.
The clock that's actually ticking now: the lease/PPA route to the 30% federal credit ends after 2027, equipment prices are rising on tariffs and supply-chain rules, and utility rates keep climbing every year you stay fully on the grid.
"NEM 3.0 didn't kill solar — it changed the winning design. The homeowners doing best right now are the ones who understood the new rules first."
~8c vs peak
Midday Export vs Evening Battery Credit
Through 2027
Lease/PPA 30% Credit Window
4 Utilities
LA-Area Providers Exempt from NEM 3.0
$1,500+/yr
Typical Cost of Staying Fully on Grid
About Ecobill Solar
Ecobill Solar has been installing solar systems as master roofers since 2018. With 2,100+ installations across Los Angeles County and a 4.9-star average rating, we design NEM 3.0-era systems daily — battery sizing, export-rate optimization, and the municipal-utility exemptions most installers don't even check.
We created this action plan because most homeowners still don't know how the post-NEM 2.0 rules actually work — or that four LA-area utilities are exempt entirely. We want every LA homeowner to see their real numbers under the new rules before making a decision.
Download Your Free NEM 3.0 Deadline Alert
The April 15, 2026 deadline is approaching. This alert contains everything you need to know to lock in NEM 2.0 rates before the window closes permanently.
Instant download · No credit card · No spam