STAND. COM. REP. NO. 279

Honolulu, Hawaii

RE: S.B. No. 781

S.D. 1

Honorable Ronald D. Kouchi

President of the Senate

Thirty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2023

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committees on Energy, Economic Development, and Tourism and Government Operations, to which was referred S.B. No. 781 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO RENEWABLE ENERGY,"

beg leave to report as follows:

The purpose and intent of this measure is to reduce administrative barriers to the deployment of energy generation and storage technology systems by requiring government entities in the State that issue building permits to implement SolarAPP+ or a functionally equivalent online automated permitting platform that verifies code compliance and issues permits to licensed contractors for solar distributed energy resource systems in real time by January 1, 2024.

Your Committees received testimony in support of this measure from the Hawaii Food Industry Association; Hawaii Solar Energy Association; Malama Solar; 350Hawaii; Tesla, Inc.; Ulupono Initiative; Sierra Club of Hawai‘i; OceanHead Solar and Electric, LLC; Our Revolution Hawaii; Environmental Caucus of the Democratic Party of Hawai‘i; Alternate Energy Hawaii; Fortress Power; Revolusun; Hawaii Environmental Change Agents; and thirty-eight individuals. Your Committees received testimony in opposition to this measure from the American Council of Engineering Companies of Hawaii and American Institute of Architects Hawaii. Your Committees received comments on this measure from the Hawaii State Energy Office; Board of Professional Engineers, Architects, Surveyors, and Landscape Architects; and Kaua‘i Island Utility Cooperative.

Your Committees find that the current permitting process adds substantial time and cost to the adoption of residential solar and energy storage projects and that online permitting tools, such as the United States Department of Energy's SolarAPP+, have been successfully implemented by hundreds of government entities that issue building permits throughout the nation. Your Committees believe that to encourage the timely build-out of a diverse, resilient, and reliable portfolio of low-cost renewable energy generation and storage assets, Hawaii must lower the administrative barriers that constrain deployment of residential and commercial-scale distributed energy resources. This measure will reduce unnecessary delays for the installation of residential distributed energy resources by requiring government entities in the State that issue building permits to implement SolarAPP+ or a functionally equivalent online automated permitting platform that verifies code compliance and issues permits to licensed contractors for solar distributed energy resource systems in real time by January 1, 2024.

Your Committees have heard the concerns raised in testimony that section 4 of this measure may allow homeowners to avoid existing licensed professional requirements and build non-engineered or non-code compliant structures that may cause injury or loss of life. Your Committees also note concerns about potential safety risks resulting from a self-certification process for solar distributed energy resource systems. Your Committees find that these issues merit further consideration and request that your Committees on Commerce and Consumer Protection and Ways and Means further examine those issues and concerns, should they choose to deliberate on this measure.

Your Committees have amended this measure by:

(1) Requiring a duly licensed electrician or duly licensed plumber who intends to install a solar distributed energy resource system to notify the applicable government entity that the system complies with all applicable codes and laws, including an executed interconnection agreement with the applicable electric utility;

(2) Inserting an effective date of January 6, 2050, to encourage further discussion; and

(3) Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments for the purposes of clarity and consistency.

As affirmed by the records of votes of the members of your Committees on Energy, Economic Development, and Tourism and Government Operations that are attached to this report, your Committees are in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 781, as amended herein, and recommend that it pass Second Reading in the form attached hereto as S.B. No. 781, S.D. 1, and be referred to your Committees on Commerce and Consumer Protection and Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committees on Energy, Economic Development, and Tourism and Government Operations,

________________________________ ANGUS L.K. MCKELVEY, Chair

________________________________ LYNN DECOITE, Chair