The Americans Making Power Act (H.R. 5692), sponsored by Rep. Jay Inslee, allows Americans to feed self-generated power back into the grid, including fuel cells. This new bill, if passed, will remove barriers to net-metering, the process of measuring the difference between electricity supplied by the grid and consumer generated power. Americans will be able to feed renewable and self-generated energy back into the grid from home, work, and even places of worship. This will increase the reliability of the grid, a first step on the way to a true Smart Grid. In addition, this bill will stimulate the alternative energy market, as well as America’s overall economic situation, through increased investment and job creation.

A number of electricity generation units are qualified under the proposed legislation, including units that use renewable energy, combined heat and power (CHP) systems, and waste heat to electricity systems. Fuel cells are covered under the act as both CHP and as renewable energy, as the bill includes fuel cells under the renewable energy definition.

For more information on H.R. 5692, the full text of the bill is posted online here.