Goodyear and Oro Valley Selected by the Department of Energy for $15K Solar Adoption Program

Goodyear and Oro Valley have been selected by the NREL, the National Laboratory funded by the Department of Energy, as one of 12 communities nationwide to adopt the innovative solar permitting platform SolarAPP+. Through the program, the two cities are eligible to receive $15,000 if SolarAPP+ is adopted successfully.

“We’re excited to see NREL’s announcement and the fact that residential solar is receiving its time in the spotlight here in these two cities,” said Autumn Johnson, Executive Director of the Arizona Solar Energy Industries Association (AriSEIA). “Syncing this program with the community’s burgeoning solar market validates all the hard work that AriSEIA and other advocates continue to do. Both in our market and across the country, ensuring that consumer interest is met with efficient permitting processes can really help ensure the solar industry continues to shine.”

SolarAPP+ is an online platform that instantly issues permits for code-compliant residential rooftop photovoltaic (PV) and battery systems. As many consumers and local jurisdictions know, permitting can often slow the process for residential solar and battery installations. Current permitting delays are estimated to increase solar cost by $7,000 per project. With the convergence of increased consumer interest in solar installation and federal legislative momentum, clearing this potential bottleneck of long review timelines and complicated permitting applications is imperative. SolarAPP+ provides local governments, installers and homeowners with a streamlined process to more quickly achieve clean power generation from the sun.

SolarAPP+ has already approved more than 10,000 permits across jurisdictions, including successful programs in Arizona, California, Illinois and Texas. Since SolarAPP+ provides an immediate permit for those communities vetted and determined to be eligible, projects have been installed about two weeks faster under the program.