Last week, the County of San Luis Obispo Department of Planning and Building announced the availability of instant permits for residential rooftop solar projects through SolarApp+, an automated application for permitting new residential rooftop solar systems.
SolarAPP+, which is short for Solar Automated Permit Processing, expedites solar projects by returning permits instantly, encouraging residents to invest in generating renewable and sustainable energy.
Developed by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory （NREL）， the U.S. Department of Energy’s primary national laboratory for renewable energy and energy efficiency research and development, SolarAPP+ is an online web portal that automates the plan review and process for issuing permits to qualified businesses or individuals to install code-compliant
residential photovoltaic （PV） systems.
“SLO County Planning and Building partnered with NREL in order to offer our local contractors the option for online instant permitting for residential rooftop solar projects,” said Cheryl Journey, Chief Building Official for County of San Luis Obispo. “We’ve seen a significant increase in these projects over the past several years and an automated option that reduces the overall permitting time makes sense for our community.”
With SolarAPP+, contractors will receive their permit significantly faster through the online system. In addition, any errors or problems within a project are identified immediately through SolarAPP+’s automatically-performed compliance check to ensure the proposed system is safe and code compliant.
“SolarAPP+ has been a game-changer for permitting Solar and Solar+Storage in SLO County! Its user-friendly interface and streamlined permitting process have made project management a breeze,” said Nicole Ebert, Senior Project Manager, Tesla, Inc. “We save valuable time and resources, ensuring faster installations and happier customers.
The platform’s accuracy and compliance features eliminate headaches, while real-time updates and collaboration tools keep everyone on the same page. Embracing this groundbreaking platform has not only enhanced our efficiency and reputation, but also helped us further commit to accelerating the world’s transition to sustainable energy.”
