The proposal, which California utility regulators unveiled last month, will change a net metering policy by paying solar owners for extra power at a lower rate, which is determined by the cost the utility would need to spend to purchase clean power from an alternative source.The proposal would have no impact on existing rooftop solar customers and would maintain their current compensation rates, and would also encourage consumers to install batteries with their solar panels, the commission said.The changes to the state's solar incentive program could cut California's solar market in half by 2024, according to a report released earlier this year from energy research firm Wood Mackenzie.Roger Lin, an attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity's energy justice program, said in a statement that the commission "has taken a step backward by widening the divide between those who can afford solar and those who can't.""It's an affront to low-income communities who are hit by the climate crisis first and worst, and we'll do everything we can to convince the commission to fix the deep flaws in its proposal," Lin said."