Altus Power and The Arc Launch Community Solar Partnership in New York
Altus Power has partnered with The Arc of Rensselaer County in New York to expand access to community solar while providing additional financial support for employees of the nonprofit organization.
Under the partnership, eligible employees, members, families, and supporters of The Arc can subscribe to a local community solar project and receive credits on their electricity bills. Participation does not require installing solar panels, changing utility providers, or making an upfront investment, according to the announcement.
Participants who successfully enroll through The Arc’s program will receive a $50 sign-on bonus. Altus Power will also contribute $50 to The Arc of Rensselaer County’s Employee Emergency Fund for each eligible enrollment. The fund provides assistance to employees experiencing unexpected financial difficulties.
The arrangement links two potential benefits of community solar: reducing household electricity costs and directing part of the value generated through customer enrollment toward a local organization.
How the Community Solar Model Works
Community solar allows multiple electricity customers to receive financial benefits from a solar installation located elsewhere in their utility service territory. Instead of installing panels on individual homes, a larger solar project supplies electricity to the grid, and participating customers receive credits associated with their share of the project’s generation.
The model can therefore be accessible to renters as well as homeowners, including people whose properties are unsuitable for rooftop solar.
According to the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, or NYSERDA, homeowners, renters, businesses, and multifamily buildings can participate in community solar without installing panels on their own property. Subscribers receive credits on their monthly electricity bills based on electricity generated by the project.
New York requires community solar projects to serve multiple subscribers and has established rules governing customer allocation and the relationship between projects and local utilities. Customers generally continue to receive electricity and billing services from their existing utility while solar generation is credited through the state’s distributed energy framework.
For organizations such as The Arc, partnerships with community solar developers can provide a relatively low-barrier way to give employees and supporters access to renewable energy benefits without requiring the organization to develop its own generation project.
Altus Power Expands Community Solar Presence in New York
Altus Power said it currently operates more than 267 MW of assets in New York State and serves more than 17,000 community solar subscribers there. Across its wider portfolio, the company reported more than 1.4 GW of solar generation assets operating across 30 states and the District of Columbia.
The company develops and operates solar projects on sites including commercial rooftops, carports and ground-mounted locations. Under its community solar model, electricity generated by these installations is supplied to local grids, while participating customers receive bill credits associated with their subscriptions.
The Rensselaer County partnership was facilitated by John B. Hamor and Capital Energy Partners, which helped connect The Arc with Altus Power.
For The Arc, the initiative adds an energy-related benefit to its wider support for employees and the community. The organization has operated in Rensselaer County for 75 years and provides services supporting people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
New York’s Distributed Solar Market Continues to Grow
The partnership comes as New York continues to expand distributed solar generation.
In July 2026, New York announced that installed distributed solar capacity had reached 8 GW statewide, putting the state ahead of schedule toward its goal of 10 GW by 2030. NYSERDA said the installed capacity was sufficient to serve the equivalent of more than 1.3 million homes and businesses.
The state also reported that distributed solar development had generated approximately $12.2 billion in private investment and supported more than 16,000 jobs. New York installed a record 1.28 GW of solar during 2025 alone.
Community solar has been an important part of that expansion. NYSERDA reported that more than 1,300 community solar projects had been built in New York by March 2025, making the state one of the largest community solar markets in the United States.
New York has also expanded its approach to making solar savings available to lower-income households. Its Statewide Solar for All program connects eligible electricity customers with community solar generation without upfront costs or monthly subscription fees, with discounts delivered through existing utility bills.
Community Partnerships Could Broaden Participation
The Altus Power and The Arc initiative illustrates how employers, nonprofits, and community organizations can act as channels for increasing participation in distributed renewable energy programs.
Community solar can address several barriers associated with conventional residential solar. Renters generally cannot install their own systems, while homeowners may face unsuitable roofs, high upfront costs, or other technical constraints. Subscription-based projects allow these customers to participate in local renewable generation without owning the physical equipment.
At the same time, the financial value of individual subscriptions depends on factors including local program rules, electricity consumption, project availability, and the terms offered by the community solar provider. Customers therefore need to understand how bill credits and subscription payments are calculated before enrolling.
For organizations considering similar arrangements, the model provides a way to connect employee or community benefits with renewable energy deployment without requiring direct ownership of generation assets. The Rensselaer County partnership adds another element by tying each successful enrollment to funding for an employee assistance program.
As New York moves toward higher levels of distributed solar capacity, partnerships of this type could become increasingly relevant for reaching customers who cannot access rooftop solar directly while distributing some of the financial benefits of renewable generation more broadly.
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