Mountain Association for Community and Economic Development

This op-ed ran in several Kentucky papers in May 2026.

Over the past several decades, rural Kentucky has faced significant changes. In Eastern Kentucky, a shrinking tax base, population loss, and the decline of long-standing industries has made resilience an ever-changing challenge. Through it all, our communities have adapted and searched for new ways to build a stronger, more diverse economy.

Increasingly, a new crisis has emerged: the soaring cost of keeping the lights on. For small businesses and farms that are essential to our local economy, electric rates for commercial facilities have more than doubled over the last 20 years. When you layer in historic inflation, the math becomes overwhelming. Overhead costs eat away at already thin margins, forcing owners to choose between a new hire, a new piece of equipment, or simply paying the utility bill.

At Mountain Association, we have been supporting small businesses since 1976 and saw this energy crisis coming early. In 2008, as costs began their steep climb, we launched an energy savings program. Through this work we continually see one of the biggest challenges facing businesses is upfront capital.

That’s where the Rural Energy for America Program—REAP, for short—comes in. REAP is a federal program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture that provides guaranteed loan financing and grant funding to agricultural producers and rural small businesses for renewable energy systems or energy efficiency improvements. For a rural small business owner, that means a grant can cover up to 25 percent of the cost of solar more efficient HVAC system, LED lighting, or better insulation. These are the kinds of upgrades that pay for themselves in a short time, reducing overhead and improving the bottom line. But for many, the upfront cost is simply out of reach.

At Mountain Association, we have been packaging REAP grants for our clients since 2009. To date, our team has secured more than 60 REAP grants for small businesses and farms across Eastern Kentucky, totaling over $2.5 million for our clients. These energy savings projects keep rural businesses open and competitive. As a bonus, many of the projects are completed by local contractors, allowing those federal investments to go even further in supporting Eastern Kentucky’s economy. Without support from programs like REAP, some of the businesses and farms we work with simply won’t make it as costs continue to rise.

Mike Long is the general manager of Long’s Pic Pac in Pineville, a town of about 1,630 people in Southeastern Kentucky. His father started the business in 1964 with a $3,500 loan. Today, Mike is fighting to keep it the grocery store of choice for a community where the median household income is just $27,159. Grocery stores typically run on a razor-thin 2.2% profit margin. One bad year or one season of sky-high demand charges and a rural store can vanish.

For Long’s Pic Pac, a REAP grant funded 40% of a project to install solar panels on the store’s roof and a 60-kW battery. The battery can store excess solar energy and vastly reduce the punishing “demand charges” that make up more than half of the grocery’s monthly power bill. The result is an estimated cost savings of at least $15,000 per year—money that can go to staffing the deli, offsetting delivery costs, or simply keeping prices stable for families in Pineville. Long expects to pay back the entire cost of the project in just four years.

The need for this program has never been more urgent. With each devastating flood or winter storm, utility companies are forced to make expensive repairs to aging infrastructure. Businesses and ratepayers pay for those repairs through higher rates. As the frequency and intensity of these storms increase, utilities will continue passing those recovery costs back to us. For a business like Long’s Pic Pac living on a 2.2% margin, this compounding cycle of damage, recovery, and rate hikes is a threat to its existence.

REAP is a proven, efficient tool that uses modest federal investment to unlock private capital and lower operating costs. But it only works if it is funded and protected. It isn’t just an energy policy. It is the difference between closing the doors and keeping the lights on.

Josh Bills is the Senior Energy Analyst at the Mountain Association. He can be reached at josh@mtassociation.org.

The post Protect REAP, a federal program rural Kentucky can’t afford to lose appeared first on Mountain Association.

Thousands of Kentuckians across the state are saving money on their electric bills through rooftop solar installed by reputable local companies. But there are also companies operating here that are making big promises that don’t deliver, locking you into a costly solar installation that’s overpriced, improperly designed, unpermitted, or poorly installed.

So how do you tell the difference?

• “Get paid to install solar!” “No up-front cost with this special government program!” “Available only in your area!” “Limited time offer!” If an installer makes these types of promises, proceed with caution. In Kentucky, there are no state, federal, or utility programs that will pay you to install solar, or that offer financing with no up-front cost.

• Aggressive sales tactics and “instant rebates.” If someone wants you to sign up on the spot, or within a very limited window, that’s a red flag. A reputable installer won’t pressure you to make a big investment without time to fully think it over or to get quotes from another installer.

• They offer you a quote without looking at your electric bills or without first recommending or asking about past efficiency upgrades. Your installer should be familiar with your utility’s solar net metering rates and should design a system that maximizes the financial benefit to you.

• If you already have solar, watch out for “free” offers to “inspect” your array, even if they say they’re representing a company involved with your installation. They may be trying to get in the door to sell you on batteries or another costly service you don’t need. If you’re net-metered, a battery won’t save you much, if any, money on your electric bill.

A qualified, reputable solar installer will:

• Have North American Board of Certified Energy Professionals (NABCEP)-certified solar professionals on staff and/or be a NABCEP Accredited Residential PV Installation Company. This is the gold standard for solar installers. Look for installers at NABCEP.org. You can also find a list of Kentucky installers at KYSES.org.
• Provide you with staff or subcontractor qualifications. Don’t be afraid to ask for a copy of the KY Contractor License Number or Master License Number for the person pulling the electric permit.
• Do a site visit before finalizing a design and quote. While technology has made it easy to do initial solar assessments remotely, an installer should come to your home or business to do an in-person assessment before offering you a contract to sign.
• Handle permitting, inspections, utility interconnections and net metering applications. They should give you a copy of the net metering application submitted to the electric service provider if you ask for it.
• Fully explain how they calculate your estimated electric bill savings over the life of the installation. If they are incorporating electric rate increases by your utility, they should be reasonable – no more than 5% per year.
• Give you time to consider your options and get additional quotes. Although there are situations that might warrant higher or lower installation costs, for residential solar installations you should expect installed cost to be around $2,500 to $3,500 per installed kW. Larger commercial installation costs are typically $2,000-$2,400 per installed kW.
• Reputable battery installers will work with you to determine what you want to back up when the power goes out. Whole-home battery backup will be very expensive – make sure to compare it to the cost of a backup gas generator.

The Mountain Association provides unbiased, third party solar assessments and advice to local governments, small businesses, nonprofits and faith-based organizations in Eastern Kentucky.

Contact our Energy Team at energy@mtassociation.org or (859) 880-3904.

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