Article X — SMALL RESIDENTIAL ROOFTOP SOLAR ENERGY SYSTEM REVIEW

This article is and may be cited as the “Small Residential Rooftop Solar Energy System Review Process.” The article is enacted pursuant to Cal. Gov’t Code § 65850.5 as amended by AB 2188. (Ord. 940, § II(part), 2015)

The following words and phrases as used in this chapter are defined as follows: BUILDING DEPARTMENT. The County of San Benito Building Division of the Resource Management Agency. BUILDING OFFICIAL. The individual vested with the responsibility for overseeing and enforcing applicable life safety codes, and building codes, laws, and statutes in San Benito County, as set forth in state law and by County Code, and personnel classification. Whenever the term BUILDING OFFICIAL or BUILDING INSPECTOR is used in the code, it means the chief Building Official. COUNTY. The County of San Benito. ELECTRONIC SUBMITTAL. The utilization of one or more of the following: email; internet; or facsimile. SMALL RESIDENTIAL ROOFTOP SOLAR ENERGY SYSTEM. All of the following: (1) A solar energy system that is no larger than ten kilowatts alternating current nameplate rating or 30 kilowatts thermal. (2) A solar energy system that conforms to all applicable state fire, structural, electrical, and other building codes as adopted or amended by the county and Cal. Civil Code § 714(c)(iii), as such section or subdivision may be amended, renumbered, or redesignated from time to time. (3) A solar energy system that is installed on a single or duplex family dwelling. (4) A solar panel or module array that does not exceed the maximum legal building height as defined by the authority having jurisdiction. SOLAR ENERGY SYSTEM. The same meaning set forth in Cal. Civil Code § 801.5(a)(1) and (2), as such section or subdivision may be amended, renumbered, or redesignated from time to time. SPECIFIC, ADVERSE IMPACT. A significant, quantifiable, direct, and unavoidable impact, based on objective, identified, and written public health or safety standards, policies, or conditions as they existed on the date the application was deemed complete. (Ord. 940, § II(part), 2015)

The purpose of this article is to adopt an expedited, streamlined solar permitting process that complies with the Solar Rights Act and AB 2188 (Chapter 521, Statutes 2014) to achieve timely and cost-effective installations of small residential rooftop solar energy systems. The county through this article encourages the use of solar systems by removing barriers and expanding the ability of property owners to install solar energy systems. This article allows the county to achieve these goals while protecting the public health and safety. (Ord. 940, § II(part), 2015)

(A) This article applies to the permitting of all small residential rooftop solar energy systems in the county. (B) Small residential rooftop solar energy systems legally established or permitted prior to the effective date of this article are not subject to the requirements of this article unless physical modifications or alterations are undertaken that materially change the size, type, or components of a small rooftop energy system in such a way as to require new permitting. Routine

operation and maintenance or like, in-kind replacements shall not require a permit. (Ord. 940, § II(part), 2015)

(A) All solar energy systems shall meet applicable health and safety standards, regulations, codes, and requirements imposed by the state and the county. (B) Solar energy systems for heating water in single-family residences and for heating water in commercial or swimming pool applications shall be certified by an accredited listing agency as defined by the California Plumbing and Mechanical Code. (C) Solar energy systems for producing electricity shall meet all applicable safety and performance standards established by the California Electrical Code, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and accredited testing laboratories such as Underwriters Laboratories and, where applicable, rules of the Public Utilities Commission regarding safety and reliability. (Ord. 940, § II(part), 2015)

(A) All documents required for the submission of an expedited solar energy system application shall be made available on the publicly accessible county website. (B) Electronic submittal of the required permit application and documents by email or facsimile shall be made available to all small residential rooftop solar energy system permit applicants. (C) Electronic signatures shall be accepted by the county on all electronic submittals in lieu of a wet signature. (D) Cal. Gov’t Code § 65850.5 provides that in developing an expedited permitting process, the city, county, or city and county shall adopt a checklist of all requirements with which small rooftop solar energy systems shall comply to be eligible for expedited review. The Building Official shall adopt a standard plan and checklist of all requirements with which small residential rooftop solar energy systems shall comply to be eligible for expedited review. The checklist shall be published on the county’s internet website. The process and checklist shall substantially conform to the California Solar Permitting Guidebook. (E) The Building Official will have the authority to revise the process, standard plan(s) and checklist in substantial conformance to such revisions as may be made periodically to the California Solar Permitting Guidebook. (F) The Board of Supervisors may by ordinance, modify the checklists and standards found in the California Solar Permitting Guidebook due to unique climatic, geological, seismological, or topographical conditions in the county. (G) The Board of Supervisors may establish fees for the permitting of small residential rooftop solar energy systems, provided all such fees comply with Cal. Gov’t Code §§ 65850.55, 66015, 66016 and Cal. Health and Safety Code § 17951. (Ord. 940, § II(part), 2015)

(A) Prior to submitting an application, the applicant shall: (1) Verify satisfaction through the use of standard engineering evaluation techniques that the support structure for the small residential rooftop solar energy system is stable and adequate to transfer all wind, seismic, and dead and live loads associated with the system to the building foundation; and (2) At the applicant’s cost, using standard electrical inspection techniques, verify that the existing electrical system, including existing line, load, ground and bonding wiring as well as main panel and subpanel sizes, are adequately sized, based on the existing electrical system’s current use, to carry all new photovoltaic electrical loads. (B) For a project complying with the checklist for a small residential rooftop solar energy system the applicant may submit the permit application and associated documentation to the county’s building division by personal, mailed, or electronic submittal, together with the required permit processing and inspection fees. (C) An application that satisfies the information requirements in the checklist, as determined by the Building Official, shall be deemed complete. Upon receipt of an incomplete application, the Building Official shall issue a written correction notice detailing all deficiencies in the application and any additional information required to be eligible for expedited permit issuance. (D) Upon confirmation by the Building Official of the application and supporting documentation being complete and meeting the requirements of the checklist, the Building Official shall administratively approve the application and issue all required permits and/or authorizations, except as further set forth below. Such approval does not authorize an applicant to connect the small residential rooftop energy system to the local utility provider’s electricity grid. The applicant is responsible for obtaining such approval or permission from the local utility provider after requesting and obtaining a final inspection and

receiving final approval on the inspection record. (E) The Building Official's review shall be limited to whether the proposed small residential rooftop solar energy system meets all health and safety requirements of local, state, and federal law. The requirements of local law shall be limited to those standards and regulations necessary to ensure that the solar energy system will not have a specific, adverse impact upon the public health or safety. (F) The Building Official may require an applicant to apply for a use permit, if the Building Official finds, based on substantial evidence, that the small residential rooftop solar energy system could have a specific, adverse impact upon the public health and safety. Such decision, if made, may be appealed to the San Benito County Planning Commission. (G) If a use permit is required, the application for the use permit may be denied if the appropriate authority as designed in the applicable county zoning ordinance makes written findings based upon substantial evidence in the record that the proposed installation would have a specific, adverse impact upon the public health or safety, and there is no feasible method to satisfactorily mitigate or avoid the specific, adverse impact. Such findings shall include the basis for the rejection of potential feasible alternatives of preventing the adverse impact. Such decisions may be appealed to the County Planning Commission, or if the Planning Commission was the appropriate authority, such decisions may be appealed to the Board of Supervisors. (1) Any condition imposed on an application to install a solar energy system shall be designed to mitigation the specific, adverse impact upon the public health and safety at the lowest possible cost. (2) A feasible method to satisfactorily mitigate or avoid the specific, adverse impact includes, but is not limited to, any cost-effective method, condition, or mitigation imposed by the county on another similarly situated application in a prior successful application for a permit. The county shall use its best efforts to ensure that the selected method, condition, or mitigation meets the conditions of Cal. Civil Code § 714(s)(1)(A) and (B). (H) The county shall not withhold issuance based on the approval of an association, as defined in Cal. Civil Code § 4080. (I) For a small residential rooftop solar energy system eligible for expedited review, only one inspection shall be required, which shall be done in a timely manner. If a fire inspection is required, that inspection shall be perfonned by the local fire authority prior to the inspection by the Building Official. If a small residential rooftop solar energy system fails inspection, a subsequent inspection is authorized; however the subsequent inspection need not conform to the requirements of this division. Also, subsequent inspections, after the first, shall be charged a reasonable reinspection fee as determined by the Building Official in accordance with the currently adopted fee schedule. (Ord. 940, § II(part), 2015)