PSC Approves Community Solar Program Expansion, Expected to Unlock 40 MW Across Wisconsin Over Three Years
29 October 2026
The Public Service Commission of Wisconsin (PSCW) has approved a key expansion of Manitowoc Public Utilities' (MPU) community solar program, marking a significant development in the state's growing debate over how to deliver this renewable energy option to customers.
This represents the first recorded approval of a so-called "community solar program expansion" by PSCW in its 2023-2025 Biennial Report. The Commission's decision, announced at an Open Meeting on August 31, allows MPU to more than double the capacity of its solar site on Hecker Road from 1,000 kW to 1,500 kW, while keeping the site in the same location.
The larger site will not only boost the program's capacity, but also open additional blocks for subscription, as MPU continues to build its waiting list of interested customers, the utility said in a September 12 statement. Notably, joining that list does not guarantee or require a final subscription—it merely indicates interest for future application opportunities.
MPU first petitioned the PSCW for a community solar facility in February 2022, when it filed its initial request for the 1,000 kW project. While MPU is able to expand its own program on its own, the utility's move comes amidst key policy deliberations over how Wisconsin—and the PSCW specifically—will govern community solar in the future.
RENEW Wisconsin proposed a statewide community solar framework in September 2023 that would bar a single entity from controlling a majority of projects and would cap projects at 5 MW each. Wisconsin does not have a law authorizing community solar programs or setting statewide rules for how they operate; in the absence of such a law, state utilities initiate programs through PSC-approved tariffs, according to policy research from R Street.
The PSCW is already overseeing a surge in solar development in the state. Its 2023–2025 Biennial Report says the Commission approved nine utility-scale solar and energy storage projects across Wisconsin, with a combined addition of 2,569 MW of solar generation and 850 MW of batteries.
In 2021, the PSCW expanded its work on community solar with two systems aimed at low- to moderate-income households in Vernon and Pierce Counties taking shape through the Wisconsin Community Solar Coalition. An earlier report noted the agency determined these projects to be in the public interest, though their current status remains unclear.
The state's growing interest in distributed renewable energy may in part be driven by customer demand, but it also owes much to longstanding legislative interest in expanding access to solar, even as actual community solar installations remain limited.
RENEW Wisconsin has tracked multiple pieces of community solar legislation in recent years, though none have passed. PSCW records currently show 12 utility-scale solar projects awaiting approval, with a combined proposed capacity of 1,363 MW.