Solar group, local firms seek faster permitting process

A proposed state law would institute a standard statewide permitting system for the solar industry, bypassing local governments’ various procedures and fees which hurt local solar companies’ bottom line.

The issue: Some Central Florida city and county governments require solar companies to pull — and pay for — multiple permits to install one solar panel system, which means the need for multiple inspections. As a result, that can turn a simple eight-hour installation into a three-week ordeal and drive up costs.

The proposed committee bill — PCB EUP 09-03–Alternative Energy and Energy Efficiency sponsored by Rep. Paige Kreegel, R-Punta Gorda, chairman of the state’s Energy and Utilities Policy Committee — would simplify things.

Instead, it would require a single permit, a single permit application and a single fee for the installation of a single system. It also would require local governments to charge a base fee for a permit based on the time it takes to review the application and install the system.

Seminole County and the city of Orlando have some of the toughest permitting systems to work with in Central Florida, solar companies said, while Orange and Osceola counties have more streamlined systems.

Due to the complexity of installing solar systems on buildings — whether residential or commercial — local governments require solar companies to pull up to three permits per installation, each needing an inspection, for a job that takes minimal time to complete, said Bruce Kershner, executive director of the Florida Solar Energy Industries Association, a Longwood-based, 100-member trade group for the solar industry.

And each permit costs contractors money and time, which has to be passed on to the customer, “creating another barrier that doesn’t encourage people to use renewable energy due to high costs.”

Bill Park, owner of Central Florida Solar Inc., a Casselberry-based solar water heater, pool heater and panel installer, said he’s seen permitting fees cost up to $1,800 for solar panel installations — a far cry from the base $50 fee per permit charged for other types of installations such as solar water heaters.

Another problem solar companies face, said Richard Smith, president of Longwood-based Superior Solar Systems LLC, is the fact that many government permit inspectors “are not cross-trained on solar technology that involves many aspects such as plumbing, building and electrical for a solar water heating installation.”

So a solar water system may require up to three permits — plumbing, electrical and building — before a project can get the green light, said Tim Johnson, permitting services director for the city of Orlando. The city charges $50 per permit pulled, which in the case of a solar pool heater could total $150 in fees.

As a result, Park and Smith said their firms may focus their marketing efforts in areas with faster, cheaper permitting procedures if a standard statewide permitting system isn’t put in place.

Orlando and Seminole County say they are working to improve their procedures, and they support the idea of the single permit regulation the bill would create since it encourages Central Floridians to use solar power. “Green practices are extremely important to the city, so we want to see this happen,” said Johnson.

The bill now is in state House committees, but there is no specific date for when it will reach the House or Senate floors.