Let the Sunshine In, for the Benefit of All Proven strategies can make solar power available to lower income people. Low- and moderate-income households bear heavy housing and energy cost burdens. In the United States, people with low incomes spend about three times more of their income on energy than those with higher incomes. Moreover, these households are much less likely to reap the benefits of converting to solar power. But now, a study from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has identified three approaches that effectively expand the availability of rooftop solar to people in lower income brackets. Energy, housing, health, and education systems; and âsystems that encourage or discourage environmental degradationâ all âtouch racial justice. So in order to start breaking down racial disparities in solar, I think we need to broaden our lens.â