California legalizes plug-in balcony solar, cutting utility red tape for renters

Californians who can’t install rooftop solar are getting another way to tap into the sunshine. Governor Gavin Newsom signed a bill opening the door to small plug-in solar, also known as balcony solar, alongside two laws designed to get more out of home energy devices and the grid California already has. All three were signed on September 30.

Plug and play balcony solar

For renters, apartment dwellers, and homeowners with unsuitable roofs, the most immediately relatable change is SB 868, state Senator Scott Wiener’s Plug and Play Solar Act.

Balcony solar is pretty much what it sounds like: small solar systems that can sit on a sunny balcony, patio, or backyard and plug into a 120v household outlet. They generate electricity to help power appliances running in the home, reducing how much electricity the household needs to buy from its utility.

California’s law covers balcony solar systems with a combined output of up to 1,200 watts AC per household. Qualifying devices must comply with electrical codes, be certified by Underwriters Laboratories or an equivalent testing lab, and include protection to prevent them from feeding electricity into the grid during an outage.

The big change is the paperwork. Utilities won’t be able to require an interconnection agreement, advance approval, or device-related fees for qualifying systems. They can require a simple online notification with the system’s address, make, model, and size.

Those utility exemptions expire on January 1, 2030, under the signed legislation.

Virtual power plants

The other two bills, both authored by state Senator Josh Becker, tackle a different question: How can California make better use of energy equipment people have already paid for?

SB 913, the Clean Local Power Act, addresses coordinated groups of home batteries, EVs, smart thermostats, and other devices that can supply electricity or reduce demand when the grid needs help. Becker says California should put those existing resources to work to help maintain reliability and lower costs.

The law directs regulators to improve the pathways for those virtual power plants to count toward utilities’ reliability requirements – the obligation to have enough power available when customers need it.

That gives coordinated home energy resources a clearer route to compete alongside conventional power plants. Regulators have until June 30, 2028, to make the required changes.

Maximizing the grid

SB 905, meanwhile, looks at the poles and wires, and the goal is to curb rising utility bills.

It requires large investor-owned utilities to publish data showing how heavily different parts of their local grids are used, how much room they have outside peak hours, and where capacity is tight.

Utilities must also assess whether batteries or shifting electricity use to less busy hours could meet local grid needs more cheaply than traditional infrastructure upgrades.

The law goes beyond grid data, too. It directs regulators to consider lower shareholder returns on certain utility investments and explore cheaper ways to finance electricity infrastructure. The potential savings will depend on what regulators decide and how utilities implement those requirements.

Kat Lockwood, CEO of The Climate Center, said, “Not only do these laws provide relief for Californians struggling with high utility bills, but they also create a foundation for climate action and affordability that our next governor can build on.”

Read more: EIA: 83 GW of renewables and storage coming in 12 months as fossil fuel capacity to fall

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