Solana's Alpenglow Switch Replaces Vote Fees With 0.8 SOL Charge

Solana's planned Alpenglow switch will replace fees on individual validator votes with a 0.8 Solana (SOL) participation charge per epoch, changing network costs as those votes move out of transaction blocks. The charge will be burned from participating validators' vote accounts. The first deduction, at the start of epoch 1064, will cover participation in epoch 1065. Epoch 1064 is estimated to begin Oct. 21 at about 9:20 a.m. ET (13:20 UTC). TowerBFT is expected to run for another 5,000 slots, or roughly 18 minutes, before the planned Alpenglow handoff .