I mean "should" depends on the goal of the pricing policy right? If the goal is a "fair comparison", perhaps the policy makers should include the cost of mitigating externalities in the price of carbon-producing electricity sources.
Net metering is no substitute for a price on carbon. For real green power, we need to storage to balance out solar generation. Net metering /prevents/ storage from being installed.
EDIT: Never going to happen? Actually it's /already/ happened. Examples:
- California already has a low carbon fuel standard[1] that regulates "well to wheel" carbon content of transportation fuels (some sources like tar sands have high carbon emissions in the production process[2]). This is a significant step towards a real carbon price and an opening to provide fuels generated through a green process.
- California' Emission Performance Standard (EPS) no longer allows use of coal-generated electricity[3] which has caused a complete phaseout of coal plants in favor of natural gas (which has half the carbon intensity). Again, this is a restriction of the carbon-intensity of power generation which is also an effective step towards a carbon price.
[1] http://www.wsj.com/articles/california-restores-rule-to-cut-...
[2] http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/tar-sands-and-keys...
[3] http://www.energy.ca.gov/renewables/tracking_progress/docume...
Where does solar win in the current political/economic environment and where is it close to winning? Making forward progress in the next decade is going to help more than wishing for a level playing field.
Maybe we can push solar costs lower once the industry grows:
http://cleantechnica.com/2015/08/13/us-solar-pv-cost-fell-50...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/national/power-plant...
As of today, there are still 50 states to go, plus the rest of the world. Better sell your beachfront property. Time"s up.
It absolutely is since there is no price on carbon and no realistic prospect of one any time soon.
Of course, that's probably not enough. See Greg Mankiw's "invitation to the Pigou club" where he discusses the research on the "correct" value (estimated at between $80 and $300 per ton): http://scholar.harvard.edu/files/mankiw/files/smart_taxes.pd...
In a well regulated electricity grid, storage is used at the grid level, not at consumer level. Net metering (which is good regulation) limits the latter, not the former, it actually increases the demand for grid storage by increasing the amount of solar supply.