New Hampshire advances plug-in solar legislation
New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte signed a bill into law establishing guidelines for homeowners to use and install plug-in solar devices. Senate Bill 540 defines plug-in solar, often referred to as balcony solar, as portable, connected to a home’s wiring through an impermanent plug, such as a standardized or specialized socket, and used to offset on-site electricity use.
The New Hampshire State Building Code Review Board is directed by the bill to adopt new codes reflecting national testing laboratories’ guidance on the portable arrays as that guidance is released.
Ayotte’s signing of SB 540 puts New Hampshire alongside a handful of other U.S. states that have adopted laws to regulate the technology, including three others in New England: Maine, Vermont and Connecticut. Massachusetts and Rhode Island are also weighing such laws.
