General Assembly |
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January Session, 2015 |
*_____HB06435PD____042915____* |
AN ACT STREAMLINING THE PERMITTING PROCESS FOR RESIDENTIAL SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAIC SYSTEMS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective October 1, 2015) (a) As used in this section:
(1) "Residential solar photovoltaic system" means equipment and devices that have the primary purpose of collecting solar energy and generating electricity by photovoltaic effect, have a nameplate capacity rating of twelve kilowatts or less, are installed on the roof of a single-family or multifamily home, conform to the National Electrical Code and State Building and Fire Safety Codes and do not exceed the maximum building height authorized by the municipality where such home is situated;
(2) "Municipality" means any town, city, borough, consolidated town and city or consolidated town and borough;
(3) "Permit" means a permit to install and interconnect a residential solar photovoltaic system to the electric grid;
(4) "Permit applicant" means a natural person or household seeking a permit to install a residential solar photovoltaic system;
(5) "Inspection" means a structural, electrical and fire safety inspection of the permit applicant's residential solar photovoltaic system; and
(6) "Electronic submission" means the act of a permit applicant who submits his or her completed application to a municipality for review by means of electronic mail, facsimile or electronic application available on a municipality's Internet web site.
(b) Not later than January 1, 2016, each municipality shall develop a permitting process for residential solar photovoltaic systems or, if applicable, amend the municipality's current permitting process in accordance with subsections (c) and (d) of this section. Each municipality may (1) develop and post on the municipality's Internet web site a permit application for the installation of a residential solar photovoltaic system, (2) allow for electronic submission of such application, and (3) exempt such system from payment of permit fees pursuant to subsection (c) of section 29-263 of the general statutes.
(c) Not more than thirty days after receipt of a permit application, a municipality shall inform such permit applicant whether such application is approved or disapproved. Review of the permit application shall be limited to whether the residential solar photovoltaic system meets all municipal, state and federal health and safety requirements.
(d) Not more than thirty days after the installation of a residential solar photovoltaic system, a municipality shall inspect such system. Such municipality may contract with a third-party contractor to perform such inspections. Such contractor shall have a current Connecticut PV-1 limited solar electric contractor license. The municipality shall disclose on its permit application whether it contracts with a third-party contractor to perform the inspection and the cost of such inspection. Not more than one inspection shall be required for each residential solar photovoltaic system, unless a health or safety issue is detected during the inspection of such system. A municipality may perform a separate fire safety inspection if deemed necessary by the municipality. If the municipality or a third-party contractor performing such inspection makes a finding that a residential solar photovoltaic system does not meet municipal, state or federal health and safety requirements, such municipality may require the permit applicant to apply for a special use permit.
(e) Nothing in this section shall authorize any person to cause any home or structure located within a historic district established pursuant to section 7-147b of the general statutes to be altered, as defined in section 7-147a of the general statutes.
(f) Not later than December 1, 2015, the Connecticut Green Bank shall plan, implement and host at least one residential solar photovoltaic system permit training seminar for the purpose of providing guidance and information to municipalities seeking to develop a permitting process in accordance with this section. The Connecticut Green Bank may consult with and invite the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, the Connecticut Council of Small Towns, the Renewable Energy and Efficiency Business Association and any other organization or representative of such organization to participate in the planning and implementation of the training seminar.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections: | ||
Section 1 |
October 1, 2015 |
New section |
PD |
Joint Favorable Subst. |