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WHY IS MY BILL SO HIGH? Inland Power representatives are always happy to assist you with your billing questions, but you may consider gathering this information prior to calling. It may answer your questions or provide valuable information when you do call. ACCURATE HISTORY Review how much power you’ve used for the last 13 months. We call this the kilowatt hour (kWh) history. This history is provided for you on every bill. You can compare your most recent month to that same month one year ago. Weather fluctuations may be a factor in any major differences, but this is a good place to start your search. The kilowatt hours you use are the main driver of costs on your electric bill. Inland Power residential customers average about 1,500 kWh of energy use per month. TRUE ELECTRIC BILL Check to be sure this is a true high electric bill. Are there other charges beyond electric service? Any additional service fees (i.e deposits, connection/disconnection fees or returned check fees)? Did Inland Power have to estimate your meter read? This could have caused fluctuation. Have any past-due amounts from a previous bill been added to the total? Are there ancillary charges added to the bill for other products or services? Don’t forget about state and local taxes. DAYS OF USE Check the number of days that are billed for your electric use. This varies from bill to bill due to the number of days in a month and a billing cycle may be a bit shorter or a bit longer month to month. If you submit your own meter read, there may have been fluctuation in the amount of days between each read that was submitted to Inland Power. We recommend that you consistently report your meter read, which helps to avoid a 15 day bill and then 45 day bill. COMPARE WINTER TO SUMMER Detailed usage information can be found through your SmartHub account. This allows you to see your daily, monthly and yearly energy usage information. Look to see if there are any anomalies that you can’t explain. Inland Power offers a budget billing program to help members with seasonal fluctuations. YOUR ELECTRIC METER DOESN'T GO ON VACATION If you leave your home for an extended period of time for business or vacation, any appliance you leave plugged in or connected will continue to use electricity even while you are gone, especially your hot water heater, freezer, refrigerator, HVAC system, landscape irrigation, well pump, etc. Login to your SmartHub account to check your energy usage while away. Most of us note that the TV and lights were not on, but we forget about these items. LIFESTYLE No two households use energy the same way, so comparing your energy bill to your neighbor’s is like comparing apples to oranges. It is best to compare your current use to your past use. Determine if the size of your household has increased or did someone stay at home more. Have you added a new swimming pool or hot tub in your back yard? Have you had “guests” stay for an extended period? Do you have hobbies that include the use of power tools, ovens and other high electrical resistance tools or appliances? Read and record meter reads and usage daily for 10-14 days before requesting a field visit. FIELD VISITS If after studying all the above information, you still feel there may be a deeper problem, we are happy to take your call and assist you. After handling the high bill complaint on the phone, we determine if a field visit is necessary to determine any energy efficiency problems. WHEN SHOULD I ASK INLAND POWER TO TEST MY METER? Inland Power encourages customers to look for the cause in the above situations first. Meter tests should be a last resort instead of first. Inland Power’s new digital meters are extremely accurate. In the case of a meter check, an Inland Power field representative will check the meter. There is a $25 fee for testing meters if test results show it is within range. ENERGY EFFICIENCY If it is determined that your bill is accurate and you would like some tips on how to lower your electric bill. Please see the energy efficiency portion of our website for ideas for your home or business.

HOW WE RESTORE POWER Once a power outage is reported, Inland Power & Light works hard to restore your power. Below you will see each of the steps involved in getting your power back on. Click to enlarge. When electricity goes out, most of us expect power will be restored within a few hours. But when a major storm causes widespread damage, longer outages may result. Co-op line crews work long, hard hours to restore service safely to the greatest number of consumers in the shortest time possible. Here’s what’s going on if you find yourself in the dark. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS How do you decide whose power to restore first? The outage restoration process begins at the point where electricity feeds into Inland Power’s system. This could be at a substation, transmission line or a main distribution line. After these repairs have been made, crews work on remaining outages, beginning with areas serving the greatest number of members and continuing until electricity is restored to all members. Why would an Inland Power crew pass by without restoring the power at my house or neighborhood? If you see an Inland Power crew passing by your house or neighborhood without stopping, it may be because work must first be performed at a nearby location before electric service can be restored to you and your neighbors. Following the outage restoration process ensures all customers have their power restored as quickly and safely as possible. Why does my neighbor have power and I do not? It depends upon the cause of the outage. Remember to make sure your power is not out because of an electrical problem inside your home, such as a tripped breaker. If an electrical problem within your home is not the cause and your neighbor has electricity and you do not, more than likely, they receive their electricity from a different power line or are located on a different circuit than the circuit your home is on. You may also be part of an individual outage. It is important that you report your outage to Inland Power at 1-877-668-8243 to ensure that we know that your power is out. Why can’t you tell me how long it will take to restore my power? Typically, the best source for an estimate of power restoration time is the service crew, and during an outage, they are working to locate faults and restore power, and they don’t always have the time or ability (due to safety reasons) to phone our dispatch team. As a result, during storm-related outages, restoration information may not be immediately available or may be hard to determine with accuracy. Our dispatch team will try take information from the crews to estimate a time of restoration for all outages. This information will be based on past experience and will be updated as more information becomes available. To view specific details of each reported Inland Power outage, select a color-coded icon on the Outage Center map.

BELOW IS A LIST OF QUESTIONS YOU SHOULD ASK YOUR CONTRACTOR: Are you licensed, bonded, and insured as an electrician and/or solar installer in the state? How many solar PV systems has your team installed? Any in Spokane County? What different size systems can I fit on my roof? What brands of solar modules and inverters will you be using on my system? What are their warranties? If the components are manufactured in the State of Washington, does that increase any incentives the State may offer? Are your components UL listed? (Required for electrical inspection and utility interconnection). Can you show me some systems that you have installed, and/or share some references? Do you finance solar projects? If not, what are my upfront costs? How much energy will I generate and what does my return on investment look like? What is my Total Solar Resource Fraction (TSRF)? (You’ll want it to be 75% or higher!) What is my estimated solar production by month (not just annual production)? Is my roof in good enough shape to last for the life of the solar PV system (25-30 years+)? Do I need to re-roof beforehand? Will you help me understand and secure any available financial rebates, production credits, or tax incentives whether local, State or Federal? Will you take care of all the paperwork that my utility requires to become a net-metered customer, as well as coordinate the job with them? Will you also take care of any city, county or stat permits that are necessary? What are additional expenses over the life of the system? Will I need to replace any components? Do you cover that? If there is a problem with the system, who do I contact?

CONTRACTOR RESOURCES Welcome!! We are so glad you are part of our program. From time to time, Inland Power and its partners offer webinars and courses to keep you up-to-date on techniques to ensure proper methods when working on home construction and remodeling. This page will list all the available options for you to participate in. PROGRAMS RESIDENTIAL Learn More COMMERCIAL Learn More

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS What is Co-Gen/Interconnection? Co-Gen Interconnection is the the installation of a generating facility (solar, wind, or other) after Inland Power’s meter with the intention of offsetting some of the member’s reliance on grid-power. What should my first steps be? Before starting the process of powering your home with solar energy, homeowners should investigate their energy use and consider potential efficiency upgrades. Homeowners should be aware of their total electricity usage and consider low-cost and easy-to-implement efficiency measures before choosing solar. Explore the following resources to reduce your electricity consumption: • Home energy audits: A home energy audit can help you understand where your home is losing energy and what steps to take to improve the efficiency of your home. • Appliances and electronics: Use your appliances and electronics more efficiently or consider investing in highly efficient products. • Lighting: Switch to energy efficient lighting, such as LED light bulbs. • Heating and cooling: If you use electricity to heat and cool your home, your heating and cooling needs will significantly affect the amount of solar energy you need. Weatherizing your home and heating and cooling efficiently will reduce the amount of electricity you need to produce with solar. Will solar provide during a power outage? The short answer is NO. Inland Power’s linemen must have access to an AC disconnect switch to disconnect your solar PV system during an outage. This prevents the system from back-feeding, or sending energy onto the grid, which would endanger the Inland Power crews working to restore power. Additionally, Inland Power requires inverters to have an automatic voltage-sensing disconnect switch built into them to prevent back-feeding. This redundancy is for the safety of Inland Power’s linemen and other personnel. If you’d like a backup power source during outages, an efficient generator will likely serve you better than a battery bank. Most of our power outages occur during winter storms when days are short and solar PV systems are producing little power to recharge a battery bank. Battery power is short lived and extremely limited. Please see Inland Power’s web page on Generator Safety for more information. Once I make the decision to install my own generation, what are my next steps?" Complete Inland’s Residential Application and submit to Inland Power along with $250 fee and a one-line diagram detailing your potential system’s design. What happens after I submit my application, $250 and the one-line diagram?" Inland’s Engineering department reviews your application and will contact you with any questions or issues. If all looks good, we will notify you to proceed with your installation. What happens after my co-gen / interconnection system is installed? Once your co-gen / interconnection system has been installed and passed the State L&I inspection please contact Inland Power. Once you notify Inland, we will schedule to have a new net meter and production meter installed within two weeks. Are there any other fees from Inland associated with my co-gen / interconnection account? Once your system has been installed, we will bill you for the cost of the site visit and installation of your new net and production meters. This charge typically runs $350 and is added to your next electric bill. Additionally, should it be required to have Inland Power revisit the site for additional inspection, a $300 revisit fee will be required before work can be completed. What rate is my excess generation credited at? Most co-gen systems are designed to provide energy first to your home. If at any point your home does not demand the amount of energy being produced by your system, then the energy is feed back onto the grid. What if I produce more than I use? Over production is credited to your energy bank and carried forward to next month’s billing. The energy bank is reset to -0- March 31st of each year – according to the state RCW 80.90 Will my bill ever be zero? No, your kWh generation will only be credited against kWh usage. You will continue to be required, at minimum, to pay the monthly service availability charge associated with your bill. Should I invest in battery backup/storage for my solar photo-voltaic (PV) system? Adding a battery backup/storage option to your solar PV system will greatly increase the cost and return on investment. You’ll need to consider the initial cost of the batteries and the maximum projected life (measured in “cycles” – charge and discharge). The high cost and short life of the batteries, when compared to your solar PV system may affect your decision. If you’d like a backup power source during outages, an efficient generator will likely serve you better than a battery bank. Most of our power outages occur during winter storms when days are short and solar PV systems are producing little power to recharge a battery bank. Battery power is short lived and extremely limited. Please see Inland Power’s web page on Generator Safety for more information. Do solar PV systems need maintenance? Since a solar PV system is made up of panels that have a sturdy tempered glass surface (naturally sheds water and dust) mounted 4” -8” above the roof to prevent debris from building up underneath, they’re generally maintenance free. However, for maximum efficiency, it is recommended to wash the face of the PV panels at least once a year. A solar PV system that tilts the panels to track the sun in order to optimize energy has motors that will require regular maintenance. Where can I learn about Solar Power from a National Source? Check out Let’s Go Solar. Their page on Solar Power in Washington State is interesting as well. Does Inland Power sell and install solar generation systems? No. Inland Power does not sell or install solar generation systems or equipment. What permits are required? Electrical and building permits. Check with your local building authority for assistance. HAVE MORE QUESTIONS? CONTACT US: Back netmetering@inlandpower.com 800-747-7151

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