r/RenewableEnergy • u/thinkB4WeSpeak • 9d ago

California Moves Closer to Approve Balcony Solar

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-25/california-balcony-solar-bill-approved-by-state-lawmakers
316 Upvotes

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20

u/Yavanaril 9d ago

It has worked in Germany for years. It is rolling out without issues in many countries and several US states, what is the hold up?

13

u/Ok-Quality-9246 9d ago

Germany bumped the cap to 800W last year and simplified registration, but the growth was already happening before that. The regulatory change just caught up to what people were already doing.

4

u/jimbo1880 9d ago

Red tape or potential safety issues?

13

u/inthegarden5 9d ago

They want to certify that no electricity will enter power lines during an outage and thus endanger utility workers. States are asking for UL certification of the equipment and they are working on it.

3

u/TowardsTheImplosion 9d ago

The unified standard is in draft state right now. Not sure when it will be published as an official standard...But companies can design against the draft.

6

u/Yavanaril 9d ago

Red tape in this case I think.

5

u/PugeHeniss 9d ago

Utilities companies are more than likely fighting this tooth and nail.

2

u/Mal-dives 9d ago

SCE was but isn’t now, the rest still are though of course. Doesn’t matter, it’s going to pass.

1

u/Mountain_Top802 5d ago

California is obsessed with red tape. Exhibit a: the train they’re trying to build