New Mexico Register / Volume XXXVII,
Issue 1 / January 13, 2026
The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission (“Commission”) gives notice of its initiation of a formal rulemaking to promulgate rule amendments at Title 17, Chapter 9, Part 573 of the New Mexico Administrative Code, entitled “Community Solar.” Rule amendments which may eventually be adopted by the Commission may include all, part, or none of the language in the proposed rule. The Commission will also consider additional and alternative amendments to the rule.
Summary and concise statement of proposed rule amendments: The Commission proposes amendments to the following sections of 17.9.573 NMAC: 7 (Definitions), 10 (Community Solar Facility Requirements), 11 (Statewide Capacity Program Caps), 12 (Process for Selection of Community Solar Facilities, 13 (Interconnection and Administrative Costs), 14 (Registration of Subscriber Organizations), 15 (Special Subscriber Provisions), 16 (Subscriber Protections), 17 (Subscription Agreements), and 20 (Community Solar Bill Credit Rate). The Commission also proposes adding new sections to the rule concerning the calculation of the three-percent limit on subsidization and consolidated billing.
Legal authority: Paragraph (10) of Subsection B of Section 62-19-9 and Section 62-16B-7 NMSA 1978.
How a copy of the full text of the proposed rule amendments may be obtained: A copy of the full text of the proposed rule amendments and instructions on how to access the complete rulemaking record, reports, and other items filed in the commission’s e-docket system may be obtained from the Rulemaking Proceedings section of the Commission’s website at https://www.prc.nm.gov/rulemaking-proceedings/ under Docket No. 24-00258-UT or by calling LaurieAnn Santillanes in the Office of General Counsel at (505) 670-4830.
How a person may comment on the proposed rule amendments, where comments will be received, and when comments are due: Written initial comments may be filed no later than February 27, 2026, written response comments may be filed no later than March 20, 2026. Filed comments shall refer to Docket No. 24-00258-UT. Comments may be electronically filed by sending them in PDF format to prc.records@prc.nm.gov. All written comments will be posted on the Commission’s e-Docket website within three days of their receipt by the Commission’s Records Management Bureau.
The record of this case closes on April 3, 2026. From that date through the completion of this proceeding, rulemaking participants shall be forbidden from communicating with the Commission or its representatives concerning substantive issues in this proceeding.
When and where a public rule hearing will be held and how a person
may participate in the hearing: A public comment hearing on the proposed rule
amendments and any proposed alternatives, to be presided over by the Commission
or its designee, shall
be held beginning at 1:00 P.M. on March 25, 2026, at the New Mexico State Capitol, Room 309,
490 Old Santa Fe Trail, Santa Fe, NM 87501, and via the Zoom
video-conferencing platform.
Any interested person who wishes to make a comment may do so either in person or via Zoom. Those who wish to comment via Zoom at the hearing should contact Patrick Rodriguez via email at public.comment@prc.nm.gov or by phone at (505) 490-7910 as soon as possible before the start of the hearing to sign up as a commenter. The Zoom invitation will include a call-in number for those commenters who are unable to access Zoom’s video-conferencing platform. The public comment hearing shall be held to receive oral comments relevant to this rulemaking proceeding. All commenters may be limited in time to speak, subject to the discretion of the Commission or its designee. The Commission or its designee may also determine that a spokesperson should be designated to speak on behalf of an organization, a group, or a group of individuals that share the same message or seek the same goals, in order to maximize the efficiency of the public hearing. No testimony or other evidence shall be taken at the hearing as this is a rulemaking proceeding. A court reporter will prepare a transcript of the hearing for filing in this docket.
Any
person with a disability requiring special assistance to participate in the
hearing should contact the Consumer
Relations Division of the Commission at (505) 827-8019 as soon as possible
prior to the commencement of the hearing.
Technical information that served as a basis for the proposed rule and how the information can be obtained: A Review of Value of Solar Studies In Theory and In Practice, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Jan. 2025); NARUC Manual on Distributed Energy Resources Rate Design and Compensation, NARUC Staff Subcommittee on Rate Design (2016); Review of the Public Service Commission of the District of Columbia Value of Distributed Energy Resource Study, The District of Columbia Department of Energy and Environment (July 2024); Community Solar Consolidated Billing – Review of State Requirements, Policies, and Key Considerations, National Association of State Energy Officials (May 2023); and Community Solar Consolidated Billing: An Exploration of Implementation and Alternatives, National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Dec. 2024). This technical information is available to the public at https://www.prc.nm.gov/rulemaking-proceedings/ (go to Active Rulemakings and search for 24-00258-UT).