The New Jersey State Senate passed revised “smart solar” permitting legislation and the bill now goes to Governor Murphy for his signature.
The Regional Plan Association released a report earlier this year that found that New Jersey has the third-slowest permitting timelines for residential solar projects in the country. The bill (S4100/A5264) intends to speed up the approval process for residential solar and battery systems through use of an automated permitting platform.
The State Assembly previously passed in a votes of 75-0-1 vote earlier this month. Permit Power told pv magazine USA that the bill, which had been conditionally vetoed by Gov. Murphy last month and now passed by the legislature represents mutually agreed upon language and is expected to be signed by the governor.
According to Permit Power, the most substantive change to the Assembly bill was to extend the compliance deadlines in the bill by an additional 6 months.
Other changes were mostly technical and semantic, according to Permit Power. They include directing the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs (DCA) to issue an RFP for the development of the statewide smart permitting platform, and giving the board of public utilities a consultative role in the RFP process. The bill also now explicitly limits the use of the platform and preparation of materials submitted through the platform to licensed professionals including contractors, engineers, architects.
Once signed into law, the DCA will be required to make an online, automated permitting platform for rooftop solar and battery installs available statewide within a year.
The bill also allows local communities to opt out of using the DCA platform as long as they implement a comparable alternative. These jurisdictions must submit an annual report to the DCA that provides information on the number of permit applications submitted through their automated platform and shows documentation that their platform meets the needed requirements.
Increasing solar installations will save New Jersey ratepayers more than $87 million by 2030 and add more than 560 clean energy jobs, according to a letter signed by 33 organizations in support of the bill that passed in the New Jersey assembly in June.
“In this year of rising utility bills, this is a moment for solutions to provide more clean energy to our electric grid and provide more savings for ratepayers. Smart solar permitting can bring permitting into the 21st century, reduce costs and burdens on towns and cities and get more clean energy onto the electric grid and save ratepayers money,” said State Sen. John McKeon (D-27), the Senate prime sponsor of the legislation.
A recent report by Permit Power finds that by cutting the red tape in rooftop solar permitting, almost 20 million more families would install solar by 2040. Reducing bureaucratic barriers, particularly rooftop solar permitting, inspection and interconnection processes, will reduce installation costs in many areas in the United States, the report finds.
Permitting inefficiencies also increase costs for consumers, according to the Greenhouse Institute, adding $3,800 to $4,500 to the cost of a typical rooftop solar system in New Jersey. Nearly one out of five residential solar projects are cancelled before installations, the report finds, with installers citing permitting barriers as the number one reason for the cancellations.
“With energy bills on the rise, one of the most direct ways we can protect communities is by making it easier, faster and more affordable to generate clean energy at home,” said Elowyn Corby, Mid-Atlantic Regional Director for Vote Solar Action Fund. “No one should be locked out of the clean energy transition, but an unwieldy permitting process can do just that. Along with the other members of the statewide NJ Shines Coalition, we’re excited for this bill to accelerate progress toward a resilient and equitable New Jersey that works for everyone.”
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