Users of rooftop solar panels in Oklahoma who want to send excess electricity back into the grid will have to pay an extra charge under a bill passed Monday by a House committee.

Senate Bill 1456 passed the House’s utility and environmental regulation committee by a vote of 7-0. Its House sponsor, Rep. Mike Turner, R-Edmond, said the bill would establish a new rate tariff so utilities could recover some of the infrastructure costs needed to serve customers who install distributed generation.

“I question if it’s appropriate for other ratepayers to bear the expense of necessary infrastructure improvements to accommodate individuals that ride the fence,” Turner said after the committee.

Bud Ground, with Public Service Co. of Oklahoma, said the state’s current rates and tariffs unfairly reward customers who can afford to make the upfront expenditures needed to install solar panels, small wind turbines or other types of distributed generation. A new class of customers for distributed generation would prevent that kind of cross-subsidization, he said.