The Massachusetts House of Representatives passed H.4876, a critical piece of legislation that addresses key challenges facing the solar and storage industry in the Commonwealth. The bill includes provisions to incentivize new solar and storage deployment, streamline siting and permitting processes at the state and local level and address project interconnection challenges.
The bill now heads to conference committee where members of the House and Senate will work to finalize a compromise bill.
Following is a statement from Valessa Souter-Kline, Northeast Regional Director for the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA):
“The solar and storage industry is glad to see lawmakers continue to push forward on commonsense reforms to reinforce the Commonwealth’s place as a national clean energy leader. House Bill 4876 will accelerate the build-out of solar and energy storage technology and address permitting and interconnection red tape that has been holding the Massachusetts solar and storage market back.
“The reforms include time limits for permitting decisions, a streamlined appeals process and more predictable interconnection that will provide critical certainty for solar and storage businesses. The bill also calls for new procurement of 5 GWh of energy storage, and we look forward to seeing further details on this provision. Massachusetts’s solar and storage industry has been surpassed by its regional neighbors in recent years, but these reforms are the spark the market needs to reach the Commonwealth’s bold clean energy vision.
“It’s time for Massachusetts to regain its place as a top ten solar and storage market. The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) looks forward to working with the House and Senate to finalize the bill language and quickly get it to Governor Healey for her signature.”
News item from SEIA
What happens to these solar panels and batteries when their useful life is over.