Income inequality in our nation is real, and it is stark. Latinos and other racial minorities continue to lag behind when you look at key economic indicators, such as median household income. While there is no single silver bullet solution to this challenge, one place to start is ensuring that our public policies don’t exacerbate economic disparities.

In Utah, one area where public policy is having a negative effect on economic disparities is in the energy sector — specifically, with some solar energy incentives. That’s because a policy called net metering enables private rooftop solar owners to sell the extra energy they produce back to the grid and local electricity companies. At a basic level, this seems like a good policy that gives people an incentive to go solar. However, as is often the case, the devil is in the details. Currently, electric companies have to buy the excess rooftop solar energy back with a credit that is three times higher than if they purchased the solar energy from another source. In other words, it’s making energy more expensive for everyone.

What does this have to do with economic disparity? Let’s look at who gets solar panels in the first place. Private rooftop solar can cost between $10,000 and $35,000 to install. Solar panels are rarely installed on apartments or community housing developments. If a family really wanted to lease rooftop solar panels, they would need a credit score of 700 or above. To put it bluntly: only the well-off are installing solar panels.

At the same time, wealthy rooftop solar customers rely on the energy grid to keep the lights on when the sun isn’t shining, as well as to sell back their excess power to the grid. Yet the subsidies they receive are so high, they rarely pay to use the grid. The cost is shifted to those who do not have rooftop solar. It’s a subsidy for the wealthy, paid for by the poor.

Electricity is a human necessity. Therefore, energy must remain affordable. For a typical low-income household, the cost for basic household energy can represent 11 percent of their income. Any increase in rates can have a meaningful impact on their financial well-being. The bottom line is that there just isn’t any rational reason why those consumers with solar should receive such an abnormally high rate for their power and complementary grid services paid for by their neighbors without solar.

Across the state, electric companies are investing millions upon millions of dollars to expand the use of solar energy. Rooftop solar is an exciting technology and one that every Utah resident should have the ability to partake in. Currently, however, lower-income Utahns are being left behind in the solar revolution, and actually have to shoulder more of the burden of paying to maintain the grid.

We all want to see the growth of renewable energy technologies. Above all, though, they must grow in a way that is fair and affordable. Our policies must recognize that there are ways to encourage solar adoption that don’t hurt the less well-off, like incentivizing large-scale solar installations or market rates for the buy-back of energy from private solar customers.

The expansion of solar is now at a critical inflection point as Utah’s Public Service Commission examines whether the policies currently in place facilitate solar’s increased accessibility for all citizens of Utah equally — regardless of their income level. Those in Utah have the opportunity to show leadership by encouraging our leaders to pursue a more balanced approach — one that expands access to solar for all customers.

Monica Martinez is a former Michigan public service commissioner and founder and CEO of Ruben Strategy Group LLC.