Rebates

Florida has licensing requirements for all solar contractors. State licensure for such contractors is required by those who install, alter, repair, maintain, relocate, or replace a solar thermal or solar photovoltaic system. Those employed by a licensed contractor are not required to be licensed. Plumbing contractors are also allowed to provide services related to installing, maintaining, repairing, and altering solar heating water systems. Such contractors can do so without obtaining additional local regulatory licenses, certificates, or registrations.

To qualify for a license, installers must have four years of experience, which may include both installation and education and one year must

Arizona law requires that new state building projects over 6,000 square feet follow prescribed solar design standards. Solar improvements should be evaluated on the basis of life cycle costs. Affected buildings include buildings designed and constructed by the department of administration, school districts and universities. These projects must include an evaluation of: (a) proper site orientation; (b) active and passive solar energy systems for space heating; (c) solar water heating; and (d) use of solar daylighting devices. 

SMUD offers an incentive of $300 to residential customers who install grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) systems. All systems must be permitted and installed by B, C-10, or C-46 contractors. The incentive will be adjusted based on expected system performance, which is affected by factors such as inverter efficiency, orientation, tilt and shading. An incentive calculator can be accessed at https://smud.powerclerk.com/.

The incentive can be paid directly to the customer or the installer. PV equipment listed on the CEC Approved Equipment list is eligible for incentives: http://www.gosolarcalifornia.org/equipment/pv_modules.php and http://www.gosolarcalifornia.org/equipment/inverters.php.

Visit the program web site for more details. 

Wisconsin has several laws that protect a resident's right to install and operate a solar or wind energy system. These laws cover zoning restrictions by local governments, private land use restrictions, and system owner rights to unobstructed access to resources. Wisconsin permitting rules and model policy for small wind can be found here. The state's original laws, enacted in 1982, have subsequently been amended and expanded numerous times.

Limitations on local zoning restrictions

First, Wis. Stat. § 60.61 specifically authorizes towns to enact zoning ordinances to provide “adequate access to sunlight for solar collectors and to wind for wind

Utah's solar easement provision is similar to easement provisions in many other states. Parties may voluntarily enter into written solar easement contracts that are enforceable by law. An easement must be created in writing and filed, duly recorded, and indexed in the office of the recorder of the county in which the easement is granted. A solar easement, once created, runs with the land and does not terminate unless specified by conditions of the easement.

Any deed, will or other instrument that creates a solar easement must include:

• A description of the affected properties
• A spatial description of the solar

New York's real property laws allow for the creation of solar easements. Like those in many other states, these are voluntary contracts which must be entered into in order to ensure uninterrupted solar access for solar energy devices. Solar easement agreements are required at a minimum to contain information describing the easement location and orientation to real property subject to the easement, provisions for termination, and provisions for compensation in the event that interference occurs.

The New York General City, Town, and Village codes also allow local zoning districts to make regulations regarding solar access that provide for "the accommodation

Certification of Photovoltaic Equipment

PREPA specifies that PV equipment must meet UL 1703 requirements, and International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) standards, as certified by a Nationally Recognized Test Lab. The manufacturer must guarantee that the equipment will be operating at minimum 80% capacity after 20 years. The EAA provides additional technical requirements for inverters and batteries.

Certification of Equipment for Generating Wind Energy

EAA specifies that a wind turbine must meet IEC standards including 61400-1, and if it is inverter integrated 61400-2, 61400-11 and UL Std. 1741. In addition, the manufacturer’s data sheet and a minimum 5-year warranty letter are required.

Note (January 2025): 

Pursuant to the Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard Amendment Act of 2024 (D.C. Law 25-217), effective January 1, 2025, the Commission is decertifying any SREC-Certified solar energy system not located within the District or in a location served by a distribution feeder serving the District that was certified prior to February 1, 2011. Any facility decertified pursuant to the Renewable Energy Portfolio Standard Amendment Act of 2024 will remain eligible to be re-certified to produce Tier One Renewable Energy Credits applicable to the non-solar portion of the RPS. Please refer to DC Public Service Commission Docket FC1181, Order

Minnesota law provides for the creation of solar and wind easements for solar and wind-energy systems. As in many other states, these easements are voluntary contracts. However, unlike similar provisions in other states, Minnesota law specifically provides for wind easements in addition to solar easements. For tax purposes, an easement imposed on a property may decrease the property value, but an easement which benefits a property may not add value to that property.

Solar and Wind Easements must be created in writing and shall be filed, duly recorded, and indexed in the office of the recorder of the county in

Zoning ordinances or by-laws may encourage the use of solar energy systems and protect solar access by regulation of the orientation of streets, lots and buildings, maximum building height limits, minimum building set back requirements, limitations on the type, height and placement of vegetation and other provisions. Zoning ordinances or by-laws may also establish buffer zones and additional districts that protect solar access which overlap existing zoning districts. Zoning ordinances or by-laws may further regulate the planting and trimming of vegetation on public property to protect the solar access of private and public solar energy systems and buildings. Solar energy