Michigan law prohibits homeowners associations from banning solar power – pv magazine USA

July 3, 2024 Anna Fischer

The Homeowners Energy Policy Act (House Bill 5208) was introduced in September 2023 by Michigan State Representative Ranjeev Puri (D-Canton Township) to support residential rooftop solar generation in the state. The bill has passed the House and Senate and is now awaiting the governor’s signature.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has a long record of supporting clean energy. In 2022, she announced the Michigan Healthy Climate Plan, which calls for the state to reach 60% renewable energy and build infrastructure that can accommodate millions of electric vehicles by 2030. The plan has been in the works since 2020, when the governor pledged Michigan to achieve economy-wide carbon neutrality by 2050. That included interim reductions of 28% by 2025, 52% by 2030 and net-negative greenhouse gas emissions after 2050.

1.4 GW of installed solar energy in Q1 2024 and 26th place^t in the country in terms of installed solar installations, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association, which forecasts the state will install another 3.7 GW over the next five years.

It is estimated that once the bill is signed, about 1.4 million Michigan homeowners will be able to install solar panels.

The bill is supported by industry group Michigan Energy Innovation Business Council (EIBC), and senior policy director Grace Michienzi testified in its favor before the Michigan Senate Housing and Human Services Committee earlier this year.

“We can honor desirable neighborhood characteristics without creating de facto bans on energy-efficient consumer products. House Bill 5028 helps ensure that Michiganders can benefit from energy technologies while supporting and growing thousands of clean energy jobs in the state,” Michienzi said in a June 20 statement. “As this bill now heads to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s desk for her signature, our state will join our neighbors in Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Ohio in enacting similar pro-consumer measures.”

Michigan isn’t the only state to introduce legislation that would prohibit homeowners’ associations from banning solar installations. In January, the Nebraska Judiciary Committee heard testimony on a proposal that would prohibit homeowners’ associations (HOAs) from restricting the installation of solar panels on homeowners’ properties.

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The bill, LB1119, was introduced by Lincoln Senator George Dungan. The Sierra Club testified in support of the Nebraska bill. It said solar energy has become more popular, affordable and sustainable in recent years, and tax breaks have made it cost-effective for homeowners to install. The Sierra Club said there is no evidence that homes with solar panels devalue neighboring properties.

“Rooftop solar panels are not unsightly, but they are an adaptation of new technology that helps our planet reduce its use of fossil fuels. Local and state governments should support them, not oppose them,” said Al Davis of the Nebraska chapter of the Sierra Club, testifying in support of the bill.

The author of the Nebraska law, George Dungan, said homeowners should be able to do what they want with their property, within reason.