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S 2217Renewable Energy

Towns and Cities - Statewide Municipal Solar Permit

This bill requires solar projects to prove they are carbon-neutral, accounting for any trees or vegetation removed during construction.

Introduced
Population
Affected
25
Email Legislator
Introduced Jan 23, 2026Committee Senate Environment & Agriculture

Plain-English Summary

This legislation amends the state's rules regarding permits for solar energy systems and other energy facilities. It requires that applications for these projects include an assessment of whether the system is "carbon-neutral," specifically calculating the loss of carbon storage (such as trees and soil) caused by construction. Crucially, the bill mandates that a solar permit can only be approved if the project is verified to be carbon-neutral. This is intended to prevent the clear-cutting of forests for solar farms if the loss of the forest outweighs the carbon benefits of the energy produced.

For younger readers

This law changes how people are allowed to build solar panels. Solar panels create clean energy, but sometimes people cut down forests to make room for them. Trees are important because they clean the air by holding onto "carbon," which can heat up the earth. This law says that before someone can build a solar project, they have to prove that cutting down the trees isn't worse for the air than the energy they plan to make. If the project hurts the air more than it helps, they will not be allowed to build it.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups
Solar energy developersLandownersEnvironmental consultantsEnergy facility operatorsMunicipal planning boards
Impacted communities
All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost
Amount unknown
Estimated revenue
None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints
For Progressives
  • Protects local ecosystems and biodiversity by discouraging the clear-cutting of forests and green spaces for the development of industrial-scale solar farms.
  • Ensures that the state's transition to renewable energy is holistic and genuinely environmentally friendly, rather than sacrificing carbon-sequestering land for energy generation.
  • Incentivizes the development of solar energy on already developed surfaces, such as rooftops, parking lots, and brownfields, rather than untouched natural habitats.
  • Create significant regulatory hurdles that could slow down the rapid deployment of renewable energy needed to combat climate change.
  • May increase the costs of developing solar projects, potentially raising energy prices for consumers and making community solar less accessible to low-income residents.
  • Could result in a net reduction of renewable energy generation in the state if the strict carbon-neutrality requirements make too many projects unfeasible.
For Conservatives
  • Protects rural character and property values by preventing the proliferation of unsightly large-scale solar farms in wooded or residential areas.
  • Imposes strict scrutiny on the renewable energy industry, ensuring they are not exempted from environmental standards simply because they produce "green" energy.
  • Slows the expansion of government-subsidized energy projects that compete with traditional energy sources and land uses.
  • Increases government regulation and red tape, making it more difficult and expensive for private property owners to develop their land as they see fit.
  • Expands the power of state agencies to dictate business operations and enforce complex environmental mandates on the private sector.
  • Interferes with the free market by placing heavy restrictions on a specific industry, potentially driving investment away from the state.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 21 additions · 2 deletions

SECTION 1. Section 45-68-3 of the General Laws in Chapter 45-68 entitled "Statewide Municipal Solar Permit" is hereby amended to read as follows: 45-68-3. Renewable energy permit.

(a) The office, in consultation with the commission, shall promulgate and adopt rules and regulations that will create a statewide solar photovoltaic permit application that municipalities will be required to use beginning on January 1, 2018. The office’s rules and regulations shall be adopted no later than November 1, 2017.

(b) The office, in consultation with the department of environmental management, shall promulgate and adopt rules and regulations to require including, as part of the solar permit application, an assessment whether the proposed solar photovoltaic system would be carbon-neutral in accordance with the emission reduction goals set forth by § 42-6.2-9. The assessment shall detail the amount of carbon sequestration and carbon storage loss that would occur if the permit is approved. The office's rules and regulations shall be adopted no later than November 1, 2026.

(c) A solar permit shall only be approved if the proposed solar photovoltaic system is verified to be carbon neutral based upon the assessment submitted under section (b) of this section. The office, in consultation with the department of environmental management, shall promulgate and adopt rules and regulations in accordance with the emission reduction goals set forth by § 42- 6.2-9 to enforce this section. (b)(d) The office shall establish an advisory group for the purpose of creating a statewide solar energy permit application form. (c)(e) The advisory group shall include the following members and may be expanded by the office in its discretion, to include other personnel with experience and/or expertise in the area of solar energy:

(1) A renewable energy developer with expertise in residential solar photovoltaic installation;

(2) A renewable energy developer with expertise in commercial solar photovoltaic installations; and

(3) Three (3) municipal officials with expertise in building and electric permitting processes.

SECTION 2. Section 42-98-8 of the General Laws in Chapter 42-98 entitled "Energy Facility Siting Act" is hereby amended to read as follows: 42-98-8. Applications — Contents — Acceptance for filing.

(a) The rules and regulations promulgated by the board pursuant to § 42-98-7(c) shall prescribe the form and contents of applications under this chapter. The applications shall contain at least the following, where applicable:

(1) Identification of the proposed owner(s) of the facility, including identification of all affiliates of the proposed owners, as the term is defined in § 39-3-27.

(2) Detailed description of the proposed facility, including its function and operating characteristics, and complete plans as to all structures, including underground construction and transmission facilities, underground or aerial, associated with the proposed facility. The complete plans shall be the basis for determining jurisdiction under the energy facility siting act and shall be the plans submitted to all agencies whose permit is required under the law.

(3) A detailed description and analysis of the impact of the proposed facility on its physical and social environment together with a detailed description of all environmental characteristics of the proposed site, and a summary of all studies prepared and relied upon in connection therewith, including if the proposed facility would be carbon neutral in accordance with the emission reduction goals set forth by § 42-6.2-9. The description and analysis shall detail the amount of carbon sequestration and carbon storage loss that would occur if the facility is permitted. Where applicable these descriptions and analysis shall include a review of current independent, scientific research pertaining to electric and magnetic fields (EMF). The review shall provide data assessing potential health risks associated with EMF exposure. For the purposes of this chapter “prudent avoidance” shall refer to measures to be implemented in order to protect the public from EMF exposure.

(4) All studies and forecasts, complete with the information, data, methodology, and assumptions on which they are based, on which the applicant intends to rely in showing the need for the proposed facility under the statewide master construction plan submitted annually.

(5) Complete detail as to the estimated construction cost of the proposed facility, the projected maintenance and operation costs, estimated costs to the community such as safety and public health issues, storm damage and power outages, estimated costs to businesses and homeowners due to power outages, the estimated unit cost of energy to be produced by the proposed facility, and expected methods of financing the facility.

(6) A complete life-cycle management plan for the proposed facility, including measures for protecting the public health and safety and the environment during the facility’s operations, including plans for the handling and disposal of wastes from the facility, and plans for the decommissioning of the facility at the end of its useful life.

(7) A study of alternatives to the proposed facility, including alternatives as to energy sources, methods of energy production, methods for preserving carbon sequestration and carbon storage, and sites for the facility, together with reasons for the applicant’s rejection of these alternatives. The study shall include estimates of facility cost and unit energy costs of alternatives considered.

(b) Within thirty (30) days of the filing of an applicant under this chapter, the board shall notify the applicant whether the application is in the form and addresses the matters that are required by this section and the rules and regulations as are promulgated pursuant to § 42-98-7. An application meeting these requirements shall then be docketed. Any application deemed to be deficient shall be returned to the applicant, together with a concise and explicit statement of the application’s deficiencies. Within fifteen (15) days of the resubmission of an application following a rejection for deficiency, the board shall docket the application together with specification of continuing deficiencies noted by the board, if any.

SECTION 3. This act shall take effect upon passage.