[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":444},["ShallowReactive",2],{"page-\u002Fis-it-legal":3,"author-mike":395,"ssc-status":432},{"id":4,"title":5,"author":6,"bare":7,"body":8,"dateModified":362,"datePublished":362,"description":363,"extension":364,"howToSteps":365,"kits":365,"layout":366,"meta":367,"navigation":368,"path":369,"schemaType":370,"seo":371,"sources":372,"stem":385,"targetKeywords":386,"titleTag":392,"translationOf":393,"__hash__":394},"content\u002Fis-it-legal.md","Is plug-in solar legal in California yet?","mike",false,{"type":9,"value":10},"minimark",[11,15,22,27,151,154,158,161,171,177,183,189,195,201,205,208,214,220,232,238,244,248,251,258,261,265,271,277,283,289,296,300,310,316,322,332,336,339,346,349,355,359],[12,13],"status-strip",{":long":14},"true",[16,17,18],"answer-box",{},[19,20,21],"p",{},"Not yet, but nearly. SB 868 — the Plug and Play Solar Act — passed both houses of the California Legislature in August 2026 and went to the Governor. If it becomes law, the rules take effect on 1 January 2027. Until they do, plug-in solar sits in a grey area: nothing forbids owning one, but your utility can still technically require interconnection paperwork. The current stage, and its date, are in the strip above — that is the only place on this site where that sentence lives, so it is never out of step with itself.",[23,24,26],"h2",{"id":25},"where-the-bill-has-got-to","Where the bill has got to",[28,29,30,46],"table",{},[31,32,33],"thead",{},[34,35,36,40,43],"tr",{},[37,38,39],"th",{},"Date",[37,41,42],{},"What happened",[37,44,45],{},"Vote",[47,48,49,61,72,83,94,105,116,126,141],"tbody",{},[34,50,51,55,58],{},[52,53,54],"td",{},"January 2026",[52,56,57],{},"Introduced by Senator Scott Wiener (D–San Francisco)",[52,59,60],{},"—",[34,62,63,66,69],{},[52,64,65],{},"19 May 2026",[52,67,68],{},"Passed the Senate",[52,70,71],{},"35–1",[34,73,74,77,80],{},[52,75,76],{},"10 June 2026",[52,78,79],{},"Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee",[52,81,82],{},"18–0",[34,84,85,88,91],{},[52,86,87],{},"13 August 2026",[52,89,90],{},"Assembly Appropriations",[52,92,93],{},"11–0",[34,95,96,99,102],{},[52,97,98],{},"25 August 2026",[52,100,101],{},"Passed the Assembly floor",[52,103,104],{},"73–0",[34,106,107,110,113],{},[52,108,109],{},"26 August 2026",[52,111,112],{},"Senate concurred in Assembly amendments",[52,114,115],{},"36–4",[34,117,118,121,124],{},[52,119,120],{},"28 August 2026",[52,122,123],{},"Enrolled and presented to the Governor",[52,125,60],{},[34,127,128,134,139],{},[52,129,130],{},[131,132,133],"strong",{},"by 30 September 2026",[52,135,136],{},[131,137,138],{},"Governor signs, vetoes, or lets it become law unsigned",[52,140,60],{},[34,142,143,146,149],{},[52,144,145],{},"1 January 2027",[52,147,148],{},"Takes effect, if signed",[52,150,60],{},[19,152,153],{},"Two things to take from that table. First, this was not a close-run bill — 73–0 in the Assembly is about as broad as California politics gets. Second, breadth of support in the Legislature has never guaranteed a signature, and California has not overridden a governor's veto since 1979. If it's vetoed, it's finished for this session.",[23,155,157],{"id":156},"what-the-bill-actually-does","What the bill actually does",[19,159,160],{},"SB 868 adds a new Chapter 13, beginning at Section 8530, to Division 4.1 of the Public Utilities Code. In plain terms:",[19,162,163,166,167,170],{},[131,164,165],{},"It defines the device."," A \"portable solar generation device\" connects to a building's electrical system through a standard receptacle, produces no more than ",[131,168,169],{},"1,200 watts AC in total per dwelling unit",", and is meant to offset what you use on site.",[19,172,173,176],{},[131,174,175],{},"It exempts that device from interconnection."," No Rule 21 application, no interconnection agreement, no permission to operate, from any utility in the state — the big investor-owned ones and the municipal ones alike.",[19,178,179,182],{},[131,180,181],{},"It bans the fees."," A utility may not charge you for having the device, or for the electricity it feeds in, and may not require its approval before you use one.",[19,184,185,188],{},[131,186,187],{},"It allows registration, not approval."," A utility may ask you to fill in a simple online form: your address, and the make, model and size of the device. That's a notification, not a gate. You don't wait for a reply.",[19,190,191,194],{},[131,192,193],{},"It requires safety certification."," The device must be certified as plug-in photovoltaic equipment by UL or an equivalent nationally recognised testing laboratory, comply with the current National Electrical Code and California Electrical Code, and shut itself down in an outage.",[19,196,197,200],{},[131,198,199],{},"It puts a deadline on the industry."," From 1 January 2030 it becomes illegal to sell a receptacle-connected plug-in PV device in California that doesn't meet the definition.",[23,202,204],{"id":203},"what-it-doesnt-do","What it doesn't do",[19,206,207],{},"This is the section we'd want you to read twice.",[19,209,210,213],{},[131,211,212],{},"It doesn't pay you for surplus power."," The bill is silent on metering and credits. Anything you produce and don't use in real time is worth nothing. This is why small systems and daytime consumption matter so much, and why a battery changes the arithmetic.",[19,215,216,219],{},[131,217,218],{},"It doesn't override your lease."," If your tenancy agreement bars fixtures on the balcony, it still bars them. SB 868 binds utilities, not landlords.",[19,221,222,225,226,231],{},[131,223,224],{},"It doesn't clearly override your HOA."," California's Solar Rights Act (Civil Code §714, §714.1 and §4746) is written around roof-mounted \"solar energy systems.\" Whether it protects a panel clamped to a balcony railing has not been tested. That's an ambiguity, not a protection. ",[227,228,230],"a",{"href":229},"\u002Fguides\u002Fcan-your-landlord-or-hoa-say-no","The longer version",".",[19,233,234,237],{},[131,235,236],{},"It doesn't waive city building or fire codes."," Balcony obstruction and egress rules still apply, and your city still gets to enforce them.",[19,239,240,243],{},[131,241,242],{},"It doesn't give you backup power."," The anti-islanding requirement means the device switches off when the grid does.",[23,245,247],{"id":246},"two-things-expire-in-2030","Two things expire in 2030",[19,249,250],{},"The August amendments added sunsets, and they matter if you're thinking long-term.",[19,252,253,254,257],{},"The interconnection exemption and the no-fee, no-permission rules ",[131,255,256],{},"expire on 1 January 2030",". Unless the Legislature extends them, utilities could then require interconnection again for devices installed after that date. Separately, the sales restriction — the ban on selling non-compliant devices — is permanent from the same date.",[19,259,260],{},"Practically, this means the clean, no-paperwork window runs from January 2027 to January 2030. Three years. Whether it gets extended will depend on how the first three years go.",[23,262,264],{"id":263},"who-wanted-this-and-who-didnt","Who wanted this and who didn't",[19,266,267,270],{},[131,268,269],{},"For it:"," sponsored by the Environmental Working Group and the Abundance Network, and supported by Bright Saver, Sierra Club, Vote Solar, Advanced Energy United and CALSSA. UL provided technical testimony, as did electrical engineer Bill Brooks.",[19,272,273,276],{},[131,274,275],{},"Against it:"," Southern California Edison and its parent Edison International, SDG&E, the Imperial Irrigation District, and the Southern California Public Power Authority. Also — and this surprises people who expect this to be a clean-energy-versus-utilities story — the California Professional Firefighters, the California State Association of Electrical Workers, the Coalition of California Utility Employees, and a long list of IBEW locals, plus the Southern California Rental Housing Association.",[19,278,279,282],{},[131,280,281],{},"Their argument",", fairly stated: these devices push current onto a branch circuit downstream of the breaker, which can mask an overload; they may interact badly with GFCI outlets; nobody inspects them because they're bought direct; and the UL standard for plug-in PV only began development in January 2026 and was untested in the field.",[19,284,285,288],{},[131,286,287],{},"The answer offered by supporters:"," the 1,200-watt cap keeps the device well inside a 15-amp circuit's margin, certification is required rather than optional, and Germany has over a million of these installed without a pattern of device-attributable fires.",[19,290,291,292,231],{},"We think both sides are arguing in good faith and that the certification requirement is doing the real work. ",[227,293,295],{"href":294},"\u002Fguides\u002Fis-plug-in-solar-safe","Our longer piece on the safety question",[23,297,299],{"id":298},"what-this-means-for-you-specifically","What this means for you, specifically",[19,301,302,305,306,231],{},[131,303,304],{},"If you rent."," SB 868 doesn't give you the right to install anything. It removes the utility from the conversation, which was never the thing standing in your way — your landlord is. Ask, in writing, and make the removability the centrepiece of your request. ",[227,307,309],{"href":308},"\u002Ftools\u002Fletter","Letter generator",[19,311,312,315],{},[131,313,314],{},"If you own a condo with an HOA."," Same, with a wrinkle: the Solar Rights Act may or may not apply to you here, and no court has said. A well-run association is likelier to adopt a sensible policy than to fight, especially if you bring them a certified product and a clean removal plan.",[19,317,318,321],{},[131,319,320],{},"If you own your house."," You have the fewest obstacles. Wait for the effective date if you want to be tidy about it, or buy now and treat the interim as your own risk.",[19,323,324,327,328,231],{},[131,325,326],{},"If you run a business."," The bill's language is about dwelling units. A storefront is not clearly covered. ",[227,329,331],{"href":330},"\u002Ffor-businesses","What we know so far",[23,333,335],{"id":334},"what-to-do-between-now-and-january","What to do between now and January",[19,337,338],{},"Nothing stops you buying a kit today. What's unsettled is whether SCE or SDG&E could ask you for interconnection paperwork before the law takes effect.",[19,340,341,342,345],{},"Two ways people are handling that. Some buy a ",[131,343,344],{},"zero-export"," setup — a device with a meter that throttles output so that nothing ever flows back to the grid — which sidesteps the interconnection question entirely. Others buy a portable power station and panel and simply don't plug into the house at all, charging a battery instead and running things off it.",[19,347,348],{},"If you want to backfeed before January, ring your utility and ask their current position, and get the answer in writing. We're doing this ourselves and will publish what SCE says.",[350,351],"newsletter-capture",{"body":352,"button":353,"heading":354},"One email, the same day, saying what happened and what it means for you. Then nothing until the next real change.","Tell me when it's decided","We'll tell you the day the Governor decides",[356,357],"disclaimer",{"kind":358},"legal",[360,361],"sources-block",{},"2026-09-01","SB 868 passed the Legislature on 26 August 2026 and awaits the Governor's signature by 30 September. What it does, what it doesn't, and what to do now.","md",null,"article",{},true,"\u002Fis-it-legal","Article",{"title":5,"description":363},[373,376,379,382],{"title":374,"url":375,"accessed":362},"SB 868 (Wiener) — Plug and Play Solar Act, bill text and vote history","https:\u002F\u002Fleginfo.legislature.ca.gov\u002Ffaces\u002FbillTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB868",{"title":377,"url":378,"accessed":362},"Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee analysis, June 2026","https:\u002F\u002Fleginfo.legislature.ca.gov\u002Ffaces\u002FbillAnalysisClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB868",{"title":380,"url":381,"accessed":362},"Environmental Working Group, 'California Legislature approves bill easing access to balcony solar', 26 August 2026","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.ewg.org\u002Fnews-insights\u002Fnews-release\u002F2026\u002F08\u002Fcalifornia-legislature-approves-bill-easing-access-clean",{"title":383,"url":384,"accessed":362},"pv magazine USA, 'California plug-in solar bill SB 868 nears governor's desk', 26 August 2026","https:\u002F\u002Fpv-magazine-usa.com\u002F2026\u002F08\u002F26\u002Fcalifornia-plug-in-solar-bill-sb-868-earns-approval-of-both-legislative-houses-nears-governors-desk\u002F","is-it-legal",[387,388,389,390,391],"is balcony solar legal in California","SB 868","plug in solar legal California","California plug and play solar act","SB 868 status","Is Balcony Solar Legal in California? SB 868 Tracker","\u002Fes\u002Fes-legal","euTN33CFS10jscojPHjoyQtlbPByXTM_pgAt-V8Lep0",{"id":396,"title":397,"body":398,"description":423,"email":422,"extension":364,"location":424,"meta":425,"name":404,"navigation":368,"path":426,"photo":427,"role":428,"sameAs":365,"seo":429,"stem":430,"__hash__":431},"authors\u002Fauthors\u002Fmike.md","Mike",{"type":9,"value":399},[400,406,409,413,416],[19,401,402,405],{},[131,403,404],{},"Mike Yu"," started SmallSolarCo after working out that a plug-in panel was the only kind of solar available to him — he rents in Irvine with a west-facing balcony and no roof of his own. He is not an electrician, a solar installer, or a lawyer, and the site says so wherever it matters. He has a background building web products, and built the savings model here himself, using NREL irradiance data and Southern California Edison's published rates.",[19,407,408],{},"Since September 2026 he has been running a plug-in kit on that balcony and logging what it actually produces. Every measured figure on this site comes from that kit. Everything else is labelled as an estimate.",[23,410,412],{"id":411},"editorial-independence","Editorial independence",[19,414,415],{},"We don't accept review units on terms that involve anyone approving the review first. If a manufacturer sends us a kit, we say so on the review, and we keep the right to publish a bad one.",[19,417,418,419,231],{},"Reach him at ",[227,420,422],{"href":421},"mailto:hello@smallsolarco.com","hello@smallsolarco.com","Mike Yu started SmallSolarCo after working out that a plug-in panel was the only kind of solar available to him — he rents in Irvine with a west-facing balcony and no roof of his own. He is not an electrician, a solar installer, or a lawyer, and the site says so wherever it matters. He has a background building web products, and built the savings model here himself, using NREL irradiance data and Southern California Edison's published rates.","Irvine, California",{},"\u002Fauthors\u002Fmike","\u002Fimages\u002Fauthors\u002Fmike.jpg","Founder",{"description":423},"authors\u002Fmike","kb0uodhMlGk_YV3nMOIXdr6bpZgtB5zNoRxdGxsXMQ8",{"id":433,"asOf":362,"deadline":434,"effectiveIfSigned":435,"extension":436,"linkHref":369,"linkText":437,"long":438,"meta":439,"short":440,"stage":441,"stem":442,"__hash__":443},"status\u002Fstatus.yml","2026-09-30","2027-01-01","yml","Follow the bill","As of 1 September 2026, SB 868 has passed both houses of the California Legislature and was enrolled on 28 August 2026. Governor Newsom has until 30 September 2026 to sign or veto it. If he signs, it takes effect 1 January 2027.",{},"Not yet law. Passed the Legislature, waiting on the Governor.","awaiting-governor","status","y1EcgNvLaSQD00RchAw3MGw06s9kMOhBN4NDIrjgUSs",1788387857582]