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Massachusetts Senate Bill S2269

Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session

Massachusetts Senate Bill S2269 Compare Versions

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22 SENATE DOCKET, NO. 2488 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
33 SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2269
44 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
55 _________________
66 PRESENTED BY:
77 James B. Eldridge
88 _________________
99 To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
1010 Court assembled:
1111 The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
1212 An Act facilitating distributed energy resources in the commonwealth.
1313 _______________
1414 PETITION OF:
1515 NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :James B. EldridgeMiddlesex and WorcesterJason M. LewisFifth Middlesex2/11/2025Sal N. DiDomenicoMiddlesex and Suffolk2/27/2025 1 of 11
1616 SENATE DOCKET, NO. 2488 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
1717 SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 2269
1818 By Mr. Eldridge, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 2269) of James B. Eldridge, Jason
1919 M. Lewis and Sal N. DiDomenico for legislation to implement the Smart Residential Solar
2020 Permitting Platform to issue permits instantly and issue permit revisions instantly for residential
2121 solar photovoltaic systems. Telecommunications, Utilities and Energy.
2222 The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
2323 _______________
2424 In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
2525 (2025-2026)
2626 _______________
2727 An Act facilitating distributed energy resources in the commonwealth.
2828 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
2929 of the same, as follows:
3030 1 SECTION 1. Section 1 of chapter 40 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting
3131 2after section 1B the following section:-
3232 3 Section 1C. “Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform”, software or a combination of
3333 4software that automates plan review, automatically produces code-compliant approvals, accepts
3434 5online payments for permitting fees if permitting fees are levied, and instantly issues permits and
3535 6permit revisions for residential photovoltaic systems upon online submission of permitting fee
3636 7payments, if permitting fees are levied, and a code-compliant application. The Smart Residential
3737 8Solar Permitting Platform shall be available for solar photovoltaic systems up to the maximum
3838 9capacity allowed with a 200-amp main service disconnect that provides electrical power to a one-
3939 10or two-family dwelling, and that may include an energy storage system, a main panel upgrade, or
4040 11a main breaker derate. 2 of 11
4141 12 SECTION 2. Said chapter 40 is hereby amended by inserting after section 69 the
4242 13following sections:-
4343 14 Section 70. (a) Not later than July 1, 2027, the Permit Granting Authority shall allow for
4444 15electronic submission of the permit application and associated documentation for the installation
4545 16of a residential solar photovoltaic system, that may include an energy storage system, a main
4646 17panel upgrade, and/or a main breaker derate. All required permitting documentation and forms
4747 18shall be published on the Permit Granting Authority’s publicly accessible internet website. The
4848 19Permit Granting Authority shall authorize an electronic signature for the permit application and
4949 20other documentation in lieu of a wet signature by an applicant. Electronic submission, including
5050 21online payment of associated permitting fees, shall be offered through either an online portal
5151 22available on the website of the Permit Granting Authority or via electronic mail to a dedicated
5252 23account that shall be capable of receiving permit applications.
5353 24 (b) Upon submission of required permit application documents, the application shall be
5454 25deemed complete if, after five business days have elapsed, the Permit Granting Authority has not
5555 26issued a written correction notice detailing all deficiencies in the application and identifying
5656 27additional information explicitly necessary for the Permit Granting Authority to complete a
5757 28review.
5858 29 (c) An application shall be deemed approved and the applicant may begin installation if
5959 30ten business days after the application was deemed complete has elapsed and the following are
6060 31true:
6161 32 (1) the Permit Granting Authority has not administratively approved the application.
6262 33 (2) the Permit Granting Authority has not denied the permit. 3 of 11
6363 34 (e) A Permit Granting Authority may use a Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform
6464 35to satisfy the requirements of this section. An applicant may begin installation after the issuance
6565 36of a permit from the platform.
6666 37 Section 71.
6767 38 (a) Not later than July 1, 2027, the Permit Granting Authority for a municipality with a
6868 39population greater than 5,000 people, that is not exempt pursuant to paragraph (f), shall
6969 40implement a Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform. The Permit Granting Authority shall
7070 41anticipate that the Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform will have the capability to process
7171 42at least 75 percent of residential solar applications on existing construction submitted to
7272 43municipalities in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
7373 44 (b) Municipalities that adopt a Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform pursuant to
7474 45subsection (a) shall, for a solar photovoltaic system approved by such a platform, not require
7575 46manual review at any time during the permitting and inspection processes, including but not
7676 47limited to, before issuing a permit or before conducting or finalizing the inspection.
7777 48 (c) Subsection (b) does not preclude an inspector from examining construction
7878 49documents.
7979 50 (d) (1) Municipalities shall submit compliance reports to the Massachusetts Department
8080 51of Energy Resources when the municipality is in compliance with subsection (a). The reports
8181 52shall be submitted within 60 days of the municipality becoming compliant with subsection (a).
8282 53The Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources may set guidelines for these reports. 4 of 11
8383 54 (2) If the municipality has a resolution or ordinance in effect pursuant to subsection (f),
8484 55the report shall include the resolution or ordinance.
8585 56 (3) If the municipality does not have a resolution or ordinance in effect pursuant to
8686 57subsection (f), the report shall include:
8787 58 (i) Date of compliance;
8888 59 (ii) Software used for compliance;
8989 60 (iii) Confirmation that the municipality is:
9090 61 (A) using a Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform to issue permits instantly and
9191 62issue permit revisions instantly for residential solar photovoltaic systems; and
9292 63 (B) not requiring manual review at any time during the permitting and inspection
9393 64processes, including but not limited to, before issuing a permit or before conducting or finalizing
9494 65the inspection for solar photovoltaic systems approved by the Smart Residential Solar Permitting
9595 66Platform.
9696 67 (iv) Explanation for why the municipality anticipates the Smart Residential Solar
9797 68Permitting Platform has the capability to process at least 75 percent of the residential solar
9898 69photovoltaic permit applications on existing construction submitted to municipalities in the
9999 70commonwealth.
100100 71 (A) Municipalities may provide explanations that are based on, but are not necessarily
101101 72limited to, statements from the provider of the Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform. 5 of 11
102102 73 (4) The Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources may determine if the
103103 74municipality’s report of compliance is accurate, may make the findings publicly available, and
104104 75may take action at the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources’ discretion to encourage
105105 76and enforce compliance with subsection (a).
106106 77 (e) (1) Municipalities shall submit annual reports to the Massachusetts Department of
107107 78Energy Resources on the usage of the Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform.
108108 79Municipalities shall annually report to the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources by
109109 80April 1st each year, covering the previous calendar year, starting on April 1, 2028. This annual
110110 81reporting requirement shall become inoperative on April 2, 2037. The Massachusetts Department
111111 82of Energy Resources may set guidelines for these reports.
112112 83 (2) If the municipality has a resolution or ordinance in effect pursuant to subparagraph
113113 84(f), the report shall include the resolution or ordinance.
114114 85 (3) If the municipality does not have a resolution or ordinance in effect pursuant to
115115 86subparagraph (f), the report shall include:
116116 87 (i) Number of permits issued through the Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform
117117 88and relevant characteristics of those systems;
118118 89 (ii) Number of residential photovoltaic solar permits issued by means other than the
119119 90Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform and relevant characteristics of those systems;
120120 91 (iii) Software used for compliance;
121121 92 (iv) Confirmation that the municipality is: 6 of 11
122122 93 (A) using a Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform to issue permits instantly and
123123 94issue permit revisions instantly for residential solar photovoltaic systems; and
124124 95 (B) not requiring manual review at any time during the permitting and inspection
125125 96processes, including but not limited to, before issuing a permit or before conducting or finalizing
126126 97the inspection for permits and permit revisions issued by the Smart Residential Solar Permitting
127127 98Platform.
128128 99 (v) Plan to increase usage of the Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform if fewer
129129 100than 75 percent of residential solar photovoltaic permits are issued through the Smart Residential
130130 101Solar Permitting Platform on existing construction.
131131 102 (4) The Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources may determine if the
132132 103municipality’s report of compliance is accurate, may make the findings publicly available, and
133133 104may take action at the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources’ discretion to encourage
134134 105and enforce compliance with subsection (a).
135135 106 (f) (1) The Permit Granting Authority for a municipality with a population greater than
136136 1075,000 people is exempt from paragraph (a) if the aforementioned municipality makes a written
137137 108finding and adopts a resolution or ordinance. The resolution or ordinance shall stay in effect for
138138 109no more than one year. Within the last three months of the effective end date for the resolution or
139139 110ordinance, the municipality may adopt an additional resolution or ordinance to extend the
140140 111exemption from paragraph (a) for an additional year. The municipality may continue to adopt
141141 112resolutions or ordinances extending the exemption for an additional year so long as each
142142 113resolution or ordinance is adopted within the last three months of the effective end date of the
143143 114resolution or ordinance. 7 of 11
144144 115 (2) Each resolution or ordinance adopted pursuant to this subdivision shall include both
145145 116of the following:
146146 117 (i) A determination that the Permit Granting Authority is unable to adopt a Smart
147147 118Residential Solar Permitting Platform due to unique technical, climactic, geological,
148148 119seismological, or topographical conditions, including a description of those unique conditions.
149149 120 (ii) A plan for the Permit Granting Authority to approve all residential photovoltaic
150150 121permit applications or issue a written correction notice within five business days. The plan shall
151151 122include the time it has taken for the Permit Granting Authority to approve residential
152152 123photovoltaic permit applications or issue written correction notices in the past year, and, if the
153153 124Permit Granting Authority has previously taken more than five business days to approve a
154154 125residential solar photovolatic permit application or issue a written correction notice in the past
155155 126year, an explanation of how the plan would address the delays.
156156 127 (g) A municipality shall self-certify its compliance with this section when applying for
157157 128funding from the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources after the applicable date in
158158 129subdivision (a). Municipalities that fail to comply with this section may be ineligible for funding
159159 130opportunities offered by the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources. The Massachusetts
160160 131Department of Energy Resources may, at its sole discretion, condition or deny a municipality or
161161 132county direct funding from any of its programs if the municipality is not in compliance with this
162162 133section.
163163 134 Section 71.
164164 135 (a) On or before July 1, 2027, municipalities with a population of more than 5,000
165165 136residents shall provide an option for remote inspections via recorded video or photo that can be 8 of 11
166166 137submitted electronically for projects permitted by the Smart Residential Solar Permitting
167167 138Platform. These inspections shall be offered at no greater cost, and shall be available with no
168168 139greater delay, than in-person inspections.
169169 140 (b) Municipalities shall require no more than one inspection for projects permitted by the
170170 141Smart Residential Solar Permitting Platform unless the first inspection was failed.
171171 142 (c) An electric distribution company shall not require inspections additional to the
172172 143inspection performed by the Permit Granting Authority by the electric distribution company or
173173 144any other entity as a precondition to granting the customer permission to operate.
174174 145 SECTION 3. Section 6 of chapter 62 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022
175175 146Official Edition, is hereby amended by by striking out subsection (d) and inserting in place
176176 147thereof the following subsection:-
177177 148 (d) any owner or tenant of residential property located in the commonwealth who is not a
178178 149dependent of another taxpayer and who occupies said property as his principal residence, shall be
179179 150allowed a credit equal to 15 per cent of the net expenditure for a renewable energy source
180180 151property or seven thousand five hundred dollars, whichever is lesser; provided, however, that in
181181 152the case of a newly constructed residence the credit shall be available to the original
182182 153owner/occupant. Any taxpayer entitled to this credit for any taxable year, the amount of which
183183 154exceeds his total tax due for the then current taxable year, may carry over the excess amount, as
184184 155reduced from year to year, and apply it to his tax liability for any one or more of the next
185185 156succeeding three taxable years; provided, however, that in no taxable year may the amount of the
186186 157credit allowed exceed the total tax due of the taxpayer for the relevant taxable year. For taxable
187187 158years beginning on or after January first, two thousand twenty-seven, if the amount of the credit 9 of 11
188188 159allowable under this subsection shall exceed the taxpayer's tax liability for such year, and the
189189 160taxpayer meets the definition of low to moderate income, as defined in section 38d of chapter
190190 161121b in the general laws, or resides in an environmental justice population, as defined in section
191191 16262 of chapter 30 of the general laws, the excess shall be treated as an overpayment of tax to be
192192 163credited or refunded, provided, however, that no interest shall be paid thereon. Joint owners of a
193193 164residential property shall share any credit available to the property under this subsection in the
194194 165same proportion as their ownership interest.
195195 166 SECTION 4. Section 6 of chapter 25A of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby
196196 167amended inserting after subsection (14) the following subsection:-
197197 168 (15) develop and promulgate, in consultation with the state board of building regulation
198198 169and standards, the department of transportation, and local zoning and planning boards, a
199199 170requirement that parking lots 16,000 square feet or larger which are constructed or significantly
200200 171renovated on or after January 1, 2028 must install a solar canopy. The department may establish
201201 172exemption criteria from the requirements of this section. Such criteria may include insufficient
202202 173solar energy generating potential and the installation of a solar energy system elsewhere on the
203203 174property. The department may allow exemptions from the requirements of this section for
204204 175affordable housing developments, after consulting with affordable housing developers and
205205 176operators, community development corporations, organizations that represent affordable housing
206206 177residents, and other stakeholders.
207207 178 SECTION 5. Chapter 164 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after
208208 179section 1K the following section:-
209209 180 Section 1L. 10 of 11
210210 181 (1) For the purposes of climate resiliency and mitigation, reliability, and encouragement
211211 182of installation of distributed electricity generation and storage capacity, no right to exclusive
212212 183service or franchise established within Section 1B or elsewhere in this chapter shall prevent a
213213 184municipality, or agencies of the commonwealth or private electric customers in coordination
214214 185with a municipality, within an electric or gas company’s service territory, from:
215215 186 (i) establishing an energy microgrid or district energy system;
216216 187 (ii) sharing electric generation or storage resources among facilities that are contiguous
217217 188and owned by the same utility customer, irrespective of the number of electric meters installed at
218218 189such facilities; or
219219 190 (iii) using public rights of way to conduct electrical conduit or other energy resources
220220 191point to point where the municipality deems there is benefit from sharing energy resources.
221221 192 SECTION 6. Chapter 164 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting after
222222 193section 142, as so appearing, the following new section:-
223223 194 Section 142A.
224224 195 (1) The Department shall direct each electric distribution company to update their
225225 196interconnection tariff to require a process to determine whether a project application being
226226 197considered for interconnection within a Group Study has sufficient available hosting capacity
227227 198when considered as an individual project, and to grant Interconnection Service Agreements to
228228 199those projects with sufficient hosting capacity.
229229 200 (2) An inverter-based generating facility with a generating capacity of 25 kW or less shall
230230 201be allowed to apply for interconnection under the simplified interconnection process established 11 of 11
231231 202by the Department. The Department shall direct the distribution companies to file updated tariffs
232232 203no later than 180 days after this act is enacted. The distribution companies shall impose no study
233233 204or transformer fees for behind-the-meter simplified interconnection applications of less than 25
234234 205kilowatts.
235235 206 (3) The Department shall develop, in consultation with the electric distribution
236236 207companies, a common application for interconnection to the distribution grid, regardless of
237237 208compensation type or program.
238238 209 SECTION 7. Section 6 of chapter 64H of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2022
239239 210Official Edition, is hereby amended by striking out subsection (dd) and inserting in place thereof
240240 211the following subsection:-
241241 212 (dd) Sales of equipment directly relating to any solar, energy storage, windpowered; or
242242 213heat pump system, which is being utilized as a primary or auxiliary power system for the purpose
243243 214of heating or otherwise supplying energy needs in the commonwealth.
244244 215 SECTION 8. Section 139 of chapter 164 of the General Laws, as so appearing, is hereby
245245 216amended by striking out, in lines 137 and 138, the words, “that are not net metering facilities of a
246246 217municipality or other governmental entity.”
247247 218 SECTION 9. Said section 139 of said chapter 164, as so appearing, is hereby further
248248 219amended by striking out, in lines 145 and 146, the words, “in the second sentence by striking the
249249 220words “that are not net metering facilities of a municipality or other governmental entity.”