Rachel Metea

1 week ago | pv-magazine-usa.com | Rachel Metea

For nearly a decade, Republicans and Democrats in Pennsylvania have made legislative efforts to bring community solar to the keystone state. Last year a bill in support of the Community Solar Act made it through the House for the first time, but then stalled in the Senate. This year, HB 504, a revised bill is now at the same point where it stalled last year, so the question is whether it will stay in limbo or progress.

1 week ago | pv-magazine-usa.com | Rachel Metea

Texas lawmakers passed legislation to speed up the permitting process for home solar and energy storage installations. SB 1202 will expedite the approval process by allowing authorized third parties, such as a licensed engineer, to review development documents and conduct inspections required by regulatory authorities to install home backup power generation instead of by the regulatory authority.

1 week ago | pv-magazine-usa.com | Rachel Metea

Three “anti-solar” bills, SB 819, SB 388 and SB 715, appear dead after failing to meet the state’s deadlines that would otherwise allow them to progress. SB 819 would have placed additional fees, permitting restrictions, mandated setback and regulatory requirements on utility-scale solar and wind projects in Texas, which the state does not impose on other forms of energy.

1 week ago | pv-magazine-usa.com | Rachel Metea

Illinois lawmakers are in final discussions over several progressive initiatives in the omnibus Clean and Reliable Grid Affordability Act. Renewable energy projects in Illinois are in limbo as they wait to get permission from the state’s grid operators PJM and MISO. Environmental advocates worry Illinois may delay the retirement of coal plants to help meet its rising electricity demand, largely caused by new data centers and AI.

1 week ago | pv-magazine-usa.com | Rachel Metea

HB 3228 requires renewable energy facilities in Texas to recycle all components that are capable of being reused or recycled. The bill would also require nonrecyclable components to be properly disposed of. HB 3229 set reporting and financial assurance requirements for recycling facilities. This bill aims to address a pass situation within the wind industry, where a recycling facility failed to fulfill its promise to General Electric to recycle about 5,000 wind turbine blades.