Speeding up rooftop solar deployment

Today the California State Senate Governance and Finance Committee approved the Solar Access Act, SB 379 by Sen. Scott Wiener out of committee. The bill would direct cities and counties to make solar permit applications automatic, taking advantage of a new tool the Department of Energy launched last year called SolarApp+. Environment California is a co-sponsor of the legislation. 

Here is my testimony at today’s bill hearing:

Happy New Year and thank you Chair McGuire, committee members and staff. I’m Laura Deehan, State Director with Environment California, a statewide environmental advocacy organization that works for clean air, clean water, open spaces and a livable planet.

Excited to be working with SPUR and Senator Wiener to sponsor SB 379- the Solar Access Act. California is one of the sunniest places in the world and we have led the way with rooftop solar growth- now with over one million solar roofs across our state!

To get to to 100% clean energy statewide- We need more rooftop solar! Rooftop solar causes no air pollution, No spills in our beautiful coastline, and there is no new land needed and that’s why poll after poll shows that rooftop solar is the most popular energy source in the state. 

California’s potential to expand rooftop solar is enormous- The National Renewable Energy Lab estimates that we could meet ¾ of our state’s electricity needs just by catching the sun on our existing rooftops! But For too long, processing solar permits has burdened local governments with hours of paperwork per application. And as a result consumers have experienced delays in getting solar panels on their roof. 

That’s why the Department of Energy developed SolarAPP+. This past summer Sec. Jennifer Granholm came to California as part of her Summer of Sun tour- to celebrate the promise of this new tool “to make installing solar panels cheaper, faster and even more popular”

Thanks to the state legislature’s investment in last year’s budget, the California Energy Commission will have a new grant program available to support local governments adopting this system. 

Passing SB 379 is the next step to catalyze adoption and ensure that across our state; cities and counties take advantage of this technology and afford more Californians the opportunity to catch the plentiful sunshine on our rooftops. I respectfully ask for an aye vote.