Streamlining Solar Standards and Processes Southern California Rooftop Solar Challenge DOE Award Number: DE-EE0005696 Recipient: California Center for Sustainable Energy Date of Report: June 21, 2012 California Center for Sustainable Energy Tim Treadwell Tamara Gishri Jeff Wheeland Energy Policy Initiatives Center at University of San Diego Scott Anders Joe Kaatz 1 About California Center for Sustainable Energy The California Center for Sustainable Energy (CCSE) is an independent, nonprofit organization that serves as an objective resource on energy issues for individuals, businesses, organizations, public agencies and local governments throughout California. CCSE works to implement energy and climate policy in California through program development and management, technical assistance, research, and education and outreach. These efforts are focused in three areas: energy efficiency, renewable energy, and alternative transportation. About Energy Policy Initiatives Center The Energy Policy Initiatives Center (EPIC) is a non-profit academic and research center of the University of San Diego School of Law that studies energy policy issues affecting the San Diego region and California. EPIC integrates research and analysis, law school study, and public education, and serves as a source of legal and policy expertise and information in the development of sustainable solutions that meet our future energy needs. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Permitting Process in Southern California .......................................................................................................................................... 6 Typical Permitting Process .................................................................................................................................................................... 7 Application and Information Access .................................................................................................................................................. 8 Processing Time ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 10 Permit Fees ................................................................................................................................................................................................. 12 Inspections and Communication with Utility .............................................................................................................................. 13 State Efforts in Solar Permitting ........................................................................................................................................................ 16 Interconnection Process ............................................................................................................................................................................ 17 IOU vs. POU Interconnection Process .............................................................................................................................................. 17 Application and Information Access ................................................................................................................................................ 19 Interconnection Process Time ............................................................................................................................................................ 20 Interconnection Inspection .................................................................................................................................................................. 23 Net Energy Metering and Interconnection Standards .................................................................................................................. 26 Net Energy Metering Standards ......................................................................................................................................................... 27 NEM Standards and Rates .................................................................................................................................................................... 29 Interconnection Standards ....................................................................................................................................................................... 30 Incentives and Financing Mechanisms ................................................................................................................................................ 34 Solar Incentive Programs ..................................................................................................................................................................... 35 Financing Mechanisms ........................................................................................................................................................................... 36 Pace Programs ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 36 Third-Party Ownership.......................................................................................................................................................................... 38 Secured Financing .................................................................................................................................................................................... 40 Unsecured Financing ................................................................................................................................................................................... 42 Feed-in tariff ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 43 Community Solar ................................................................................................................................................................................ 44 Virtual Net Metering ......................................................................................................................................................................... 44 Solar Planning and Zoning ........................................................................................................................................................................ 46 Solar Rights and Access ......................................................................................................................................................................... 46 California Solar Rights Act .............................................................................................................................................................. 46 Solar Rights Act: A Case Study ...................................................................................................................................................... 47 Solar Shade Control Act ................................................................................................................................................................... 48 Solar Zoning ................................................................................................................................................................................................ 49 New Construction ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 50 3 Conclusions and Next Steps ...................................................................................................................................................................... 53 Appendix 1: Financing Mechanisms ..................................................................................................................................................... 54 Resources .......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 55 4 INTRODUCTION The Southern California solar PV market is robust and growing. In the 2010 IREC Solar Market Trends report, California ranked first in grid-tied capacity additions for 2010 as well as cumulative installed capacity, representing 48% of the total capacity nationwide. These impressive statistics have been the norm for over a decade and are due to a number of innovative policies and programs at the state and local levels aimed at supporting PV market growth, along with tariff structures favorable to behind-the-meter PV applications. The Southern California Rooftop Solar Challenge (SCRC) supports the goals of the Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Program and the SunShot Initiative, which seek to make solar electricity cost competitive without subsidies by the end of the decade by reducing balance of system costs for photovoltaics (PV). To encourage market transformation, the California Center for Sustainable Energy (CCSE)