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  Main News Reference Orange County California  |
Sierra Club Residential Solar PV Permit Report for Southern CaliforniaIn June 2009, the Sierra Club (Angeles and Loma Prieta chapters) published a report that compares what 250 municipalities in Southern California charge for a permit to install photovoltaic (PV) solar panels on residential roofs. This report is based on a survey that Sierra Club volunteers conducted between 2/1/09 and 4/13/09. Municipalities in the following counties were surveyed: Imperial, Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura. The purpose of the report and related campaign is to persuade municipalities to reduce PV permit fee levels to $324 or less and issue PV permits promptly (same day is ideal). The survey included questions about the total permit fee and the permit time to issuance (how many days typically elapse between permit submittal and issuance). The report authors used these factors to calculate a composite rank that shows the relative solar friendliness of each municipality. The report includes ranking tables that list municipalities in the order of:
In June 2009, the Angeles Chapter of the Sierra Club contacted several dozen municipalities with reported PV permit fees of $750 or more for residential roof-top systems. The Chapter requested that these cities review their solar permit fee calculation methodologies, since they are likely charging fees higher than cost recovery levels. State law requires minimum solar permit fees that do not exceed permit processing costs. Charging more for solar permit fees than the reasonable costs to administer the permit violates California Government Code Section 66014, which provides that fees associated with building inspections and building permits “shall not exceed the estimated reasonable cost of providing the service for which the fee is charged.”California Government Code, Section 65850.5 (a) “The implementation of consistent statewide standards to achieve the timely and cost-effective installation of solar energy systems is not a municipal affair…It is the intent of the Legislature that local agencies…encourage the installation of solar energy systems by removing obstacles to, and minimizing costs of, permitting for such systems.” Municipalities with high fees typically compute fees based on the claimed valuation of the project (including the cost of the solar panels). This methodology is inappropriate, as it tends to increase fees above cost recovery levels. The cost of the solar panels has no correlation to the cost of processing a permit and inspecting the installation! PV permit fees should be based on a billable hourly rate for the plan review and inspection. The resources needed to approve a PV system depend on the completeness of the permit submittal package, the workmanship of the installation and the knowledge of the permit reviewer and inspector. Local government actions contribute to the cost of solar directly through permitting fees and indirectly through excessive permitting requirements and times. Read the full "Solar Electric Permit Fees in Southern California" and complementary Residential Solar Permit Fee Study for Northern California at: http://lomaprietaglobalwarming.sierraclub.org/SoCalTopLevelPage.php Read the news release for the Southern California Solar Permit campaign (PDF, issued 6/24/09): http://angeles.sierraclub.org/energy/SoCalSolarPermitNewsRel.pdf updated 9/29/09 |
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